The Rightful Queen
by Fading Starlights
Summary: When tragedy strikes the Williams family, Sarah is forced to escape to the Underground and make a life for Toby and herself in the Capitol City of the Elves. Things are never easy for the Williams siblings, however, as her status as "Champion of the Labyrinth" carries more meaning than she ever would have thought.
1. Prologue

**Hello! New story, yes. I'm not giving up on Dreamseer, I promise, I'm just running a little behind on posting and I'm hoping you all will be satisfied with this for a little while, while I try to get Dreamseer rolling again. Fingers crossed.**

**Thanks to tmwillson3 for being my fabulous BETA as ever. Go check her out if you have some time.**

**Basic Disclaimer (as always): No I don't own Labyrinth. I don't even own a DVD of it. No I don't own the characters. Yes there is a brief reference to Land Before Time in here, but c'mon, can you blame me?! I grew up on it! I don't own that character either. Happy readings!**

**Also, this story was rated M right off the bat, so you have been warned. There's some major violence and cursing in here.**

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"Sarah, would you put Toby to bed, please?" Irene called from the kitchen.

It was 8 o'clock on a typical Tuesday night at the Williams home. Irene was busy cleaning up after dinner. Four-year-old Toby was playing with his favorite dinosaur toys with Lancelot sitting in his lap in the living room. Robert was watching the news.

Sarah had been reading a book of old Irish tales for school.

"Sure," Sarah called back. With practiced ease, the girl scooped up Toby, Lancelot, and his T-Rex, Chomper, and put them on her hip. "Time for bed, kiddo."

"But I'm not tired!" Toby whined back. Holding up Chomper as though to bribe her, the boy asked, "Play with me?"

"Tomorrow," Sarah insisted. "Mom says it's time for bed."

Toby made a whiney noise to show his displeasure, but buried his head in his big sister's shoulder rather than fight the inevitable.

Sarah chuckled and carried the unhappy boy up the stairs to his bedroom with little to no trouble.

As Sarah reached for the door, Toby had the ingenious idea to suddenly go limp, only keeping his hands tight to hold onto Lancelot and Chomper. Barely missing a beat, Sarah hoisted Toby up and over her shoulder while he squealed in surprise before opening the door and rushing to his bed to drop him unceremoniously upon it.

Toby glared at Sarah as she turned to Toby's dresser and pulled out a pair of green pajamas with classic monsters littered all over them.

With Toby grumbling and subtly resisting the whole time, Sarah helped the boy into his pajamas before walking him to the bathroom to brush his teeth. To encourage him, Sarah brushed her own teeth.

As soon as they were done, Sarah started to walk Toby back to his bedroom when a voice rang through the house and sent a chill down her spine.

"SARAH!"

Quickly, Sarah put her hand over Toby's mouth and moved silently through the hall to her bedroom. She couldn't risk him getting hurt.

_He can't be here_, Sarah thought desperately. _He can't be here. I thought I was rid of him!_

"Sarah, get down here right now or the old bitch gets hurt! Do you hear me?! SARAH!"

Toby's eyes were wide, practically bursting out of his skull, but Sarah gave Toby one final push and whispered, "I'll be back as soon as I can, don't leave this room and call Hoggle."

Quietly, Sarah snuck down the stairs, carefully looking around, watching carefully for _him_.

_How did he even get into the house?!_ Sarah thought desperately, trying not to breath heavily.

"I can hear you, Sarah, dear," the man's voice sneered from Sarah's left. "I'm in the kitchen. Get in here before I slit her throat."

Mustering her courage, Sarah straightened her back and entered the kitchen as ordered.

At the table sat a blond man with insane blue eyes. He wore jeans, a t-shirt, and was covered in blood while he held a knife to Irene's throat. To the left, Robert lay in pool of his own blood, his eyes open and glazed over in death.

Sarah bit back a scream and tears at the sight of her father, forcing herself to meet his killer's eyes.

"Sarah, Sarah, Sarah," The man said, tsking softly. "You see what you make me do?"

"I didn't do this, Michael," said Sarah, trying to keep her voice steady. "You can't blame me for this."

"BUT YOU DID!" Michael screamed, holding the knife more tightly against Irene's neck, drawing a small sob of fear to burst from her throat.

Immediately, Michael calmed and smiled.

"You left me, Sarah," he said slowly. "You did that. You forced me to take action. You're mine. You can't leave me."

Sarah met Irene's eyes.

The elder woman was scared, but the two of them had an understanding. There were secrets that they shared that had never been spoken to anyone else. Irene's eyes were telling her to fight, to run, to protect Toby at all costs, even if she was terrified herself.

"LOOK AT ME!" Michael screamed again, causing Sarah to jump. "Do you understand what I'm telling you, my dear?! Unless you stay with me forever, I'll kill everyone you've ever loved!"

Sarah hesitated, then asked, "And if I do stay with you?"

"I'll only kill the men you're close to," Michael said, a smile splitting his face. "That includes little Toby."

A moment later, Irene sunk her teeth into the deranged man's arm.

"RUN! SARAH RUN!" She screamed.

Without a second thought, Sarah turned and bolted for the stairs. She heard Michael scream and the sound of metal striking flesh, but she didn't turn back. Sarah knew that she had to protect Toby and Irene agreed. And now there was only one way to get away.

Sarah made it to the top of the stairs before she felt Michael's hand on her ankle and she fell face-first onto the floor.

Still screaming, Michael pulled Sarah towards him as she kicked wildly with her free foot.

"Toby! Call Hoggle!" Sarah screamed, her foot managing to connect to Michael's face as the knife cut into her leg a little. "Do it now!"

Michael was disoriented from the kick, so Sarah kicked him in the face once more, causing him to fall down the stairs while she scrambled towards her bedroom.

As soon as she was past the door, Sarah slammed it shut and propped it shut with her desk chair.

Looking around the room, she saw Toby trembling next to the mirror.

Quickly, Sarah scooped Toby up onto the vanity and called into the mirror, "Hoggle, I need you!"

The doorknob twisted and a harsh bang followed.

"Sarah!" Hoggle's face appeared in the mirror. "I haven't seen ye' since–"

"YOU FUCKING WHORE!" Michael's voice resonated through the door. "YOU ALREADY HAVE ANOTHER MAN!"

"Hoggle, you have to get Toby out of here!" Sarah explained quickly. "Please! He's going to kill us!"

As soon as the words were spoken, Hoggle stepped onto the vanity, knocking off whatever objects were left on the surface.

Gently, Hoggle took Toby's hand.

"Alright, lad," He told the boy as calm as he could. "This is gonna feel a bit funny."

Michael made another blow at the door.

"LET ME IN YOU WHORE! I'M GOING TO KILL YOUR BOYFRIEND, THEN TOBY, THEN YOU!"

Hoggle guided Toby through the mirror and came back a second later, holding out his hand to Sarah.

Michael struck the door one more time with such force that the legs of the chair snapped, causing it to fall uselessly to the side.

The deranged man's eyes met Sarah's for a moment before his eyes shifted to Hoggle and widened. While he paused, filled with confusion, possibly fear, the dwarf pulled Sarah through the mirror with one rough jerk.

Sarah felt her heart beating hard in her chest and numbness in her limbs, but she could feel wind rushing past her face like she was falling. When she landed on the other side of the mirror, Sarah shot up to her feet before she even realized that she had been on the ground and immediately found Toby, sitting on the ground, crying.

She rushed forward and scooped Toby up into her arms and started to cry with him.

Hoggle's small house was quiet except for the sounds of Toby's sobs and Sarah's soft sniffling. They were the only sounds for a few minutes.

"Sarah, yer bleeding," Hoggle said softly, using one of his leathery hands to touch her arm.

Sarah nodded meekly, allowing Hoggle to guide her to the small couch nearby and sat obediently while he bandaged the cut on her leg.

Once she was patched up, Hoggle guided her to a bed – she didn't question whose it was – and told her to get some rest. They would talk in the morning.

So Sarah found herself lying in bed with Toby curled up at her side, an orphan, in the Underground, and not sure what was going to happen to her. She had escaped her psychotic ex-boyfriend with her life by seconds and it was no small miracle that she and Toby were as unharmed as they were.

Sarah spent most of the night just staring at Toby. He was in front of her, safe, breathing. She was afraid she was going to fall asleep and wake up with Toby dead. But sleep still took her and when she woke up, he was still alive.

[0]

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**Hey! Again, I'm not giving up on Dreamseer! I'm working hard, I swear, it's just going to take a little while.**

**That being said, I've been working on this story on the side from time to time when I've gotten frustrated or blocked really bad. I really like this story and I hope you like it too. What are your thoughts? Would you like to see more?**

**Also, because Dreamseer is my priority, I'm not going to be posting and writing this one as often or frequently. But at least the chapters are longer! *laughs awkwardly***

**Anyways, if you would like to see more, let me know. I have through chapter six written and chapter seven is nearly finished.**


	2. Chapter 1

**As always, I must begin with the dance of Disclaimer: I do not own Labyrinth, I do not own the characters. Pretty sure it belongs to the Jim Henson company.**

**Thanks again to tmwillson3 for being my lovely Beta. Send her as much love as you can because I rely on her pretty heavily and the quality would be a lot lower if it weren't for her.**

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Two Years Later…

"_Sarah! Another ale!"_

"_Be right over!"_

_Sarah was dressed in a long, brown skirt, a white tunic shirt, and a brown corset that matched her skirt perfectly. Three years ago, Sarah would have laughed at the idea that she would be dressed as a barmaid, let alone actually be working as one, but here she was._

_With a smile, Sarah stepped over to the bar and told the man behind the counter and her boss of almost a year, Keagan, that Loupe, one of her regulars, needed another beer. _

_Chuckling, Keagan poured another glass and said, "Make sure he doesn't fall under the table this week, okay?"_

_Sarah's musical laughter fluttered out of her throat as she grabbed the mug from him and waltzed it over to the table through the crowded room. The room was filled with noise and was packed from wall to wall, but Sarah slipped through it with ease and placed the glass in front of Loupe._

"_Thanks, Sarah!" Loupe said, quickly grabbing it up and taking one big gulp._

_Sarah merely rolled her eyes and walked over to a nearby table where a pair of old men were playing a classic Underground strategy game called Rue. She checked on them, seeing as their glasses were empty, and asked if they wanted more whisky. One of the men smiled warmly at her with glazed eyes and agreed, but the other man refused, so focused on the game that he didn't care about anything else._

_Worming her way from one end of the bar to the next, Sarah kept an eye out for anyone leaving coins on the table, trying to leave without paying, getting too drunk, or in need of a refill._

_The majority of the bar inhabitants were elves, and amongst the elves, royalty._

_It was strange, Sarah thought, that she had ended up as a barmaid in the Capitol City of the Elf Kingdom. A few images flashed behind her eyes, reminding her how it had happened._

[1]

Hoggle led the Williams siblings into Capitol City of the Elf Kingdom. He had managed to get them each one set of clothing from the goblin market before they left his home to help them blend in better.

Hoggle lived in a little house just outside of the Labyrinth, so the Goblin King hadn't sensed her presence when she entered the Underground through his mirror. And although he had received a few strange looks for buying a dress large enough for a fae or elf, Hoggle made an excuse that a Runner had ruined her clothes during her run and she needed a replacement, which satisfied most people's curiosity.

After they looked like they belonged, Hoggle had walked them two days through a wasteland to the closest city, which happened to be the Capitol City of the Elf Kingdom.

During the walk, they had made a plan; Sarah would go find a job while Hoggle kept an eye on Toby and tried to find the siblings a place to rest their heads during their stay.

"Remember, Sarah," Hoggle said, giving the woman one last warning, "elves don' mind humans or nuthin', but ye can't let 'em know where yer from. They'd ask too many question."

"I got it the first time, Hoggle," Sarah said, rolling her eyes. "So, we'll meet up here when the sun starts to go down, right?"

Hoggle nodded in affirmation.

Sarah got down to her knees to look Toby in the eyes.

"You be good for Hoggle, okay?" She warned him. "Don't cause any trouble."

"I knoooow!" Toby whined. "I'll be good."

"Good," said Sarah. Quickly, she gave Toby a peck on the forehead and a quick hug, then turned to Hoggle and did the same.

"Thank you so much for this," she said quietly.

Patting her awkwardly, Hoggle mumbled something in response.

Standing up, Sarah quickly said her goodbyes and walked over to the nearest shop – a little boutique – and starting asking around about a job.

[1]

It had been six hours since they had arrived in the city and Sarah had gone in and out of a least a dozen places that either weren't hiring or couldn't hire her because she lacked the abilities to do the job.

Sarah had offered to be a maid at most places, cleaning up after them, but most refused. If Sarah had been able to sew, a seamstress would have hired her, but Irene had tried to teach her back when Sarah was sixteen, which had only resulted in discovering that Sarah couldn't get a needle through fabric without pricking her fingers every single time.

It was discouraging.

Looking down at the coins that Hoggle had given her, Sarah counted them carefully, making sure that she understood how money worked in the Underground.

There were four kinds of coins; copper, silver, gold, and platinum. Each coin was worth fifty of the one previous to it. And five copper pieces were worth a single loaf of bread. Sarah had twenty coppers and two silvers and the nearest place that Sarah figured she could get food was the pub across the street from the tanner's that she just came out of.

Sarah pushed open the door into the warm room to find it mostly filled with quiet women who all looked upset about something or another. There was enough conversation going on that there was a buzz to the room loud enough that a conversation could be private, but quiet enough that you could still focus on one conversation and follow it.

At the bar was an elf man with ash brown curls sticking out every which way on his head. As she approached the counter, he gave her a businessman's smile and asked, "What can I get for you, sweetheart?"

"Uh, food and a beer?" Sarah said, unsure.

The elf let out a small genuine laugh, his eyes lighting up.

"Alright, what kind of food?" He asked.

"Whatever you have, I guess," said Sarah.

Trying to suppress a smile, the elf shook his head.

"My wife's making a lamb stew right now, how's that sound?"

"Great," said Sarah. "How much is that going to be?"

"Fifteen copper."

Sarah quickly picked out fifteen copper coins and placed them on the counter top for him.

The elf took her coins smiling and walked over to a door behind the counter. He stuck his head through, said a few words to a woman in the back – presumably his wife – then promptly returned to pour her a beer.

As he was working the tap, the elf asked, "So, are you taking the Challenge as well?"

"What challenge?"

The elf nearly dropped the glass in surprise, but recovered quickly and looked up at her with a funny look.

"The Labyrinth Challenge," he elaborated. "There's never a new face without it."

He placed the beer in front of Sarah and she carefully took a sip.

"I didn't even know that there was a Labyrinth Challenge," said Sarah, her eyes only for her beer. "I'm just looking for work."

There was no response for a moment and when Sarah looked up, taking another drink, she saw the man's incredulous expression.

"You- how-" the man struggled for words for a second before lowering his voice and leaning close to her across the bar. "How can you not know about the Labyrinth challenge? Where have you been living for the past two hundred years?!"

"First, I'm only nineteen," Sarah explained, "and I'm human. Second, I grew up in a place where I wasn't exactly… hm, how do I put it… privy to the goings on of the Underground. So what's up with this challenge, anyways?"

Shaking his head in amazement, the elf began, "What do you know of the Goblin King?"

"That he's the King of the Goblins and the Labyrinth."

He gave her another incredulous look.

"You really weren't kidding," he said in amazement. Then he looked up and gave a quick look to the restless crowd of the bar. "Why don't we step into the kitchen and I'll explain in there, okay?"

"Why?"

"Let's just say… this isn't a good crowd to be telling this story in front of," he explained, quickly lifting the counter door for her to come through.

Reluctantly, Sarah got up and did as she was told, coming around the bar and following him into the kitchen.

Though the kitchen was relatively small with a few countertops, an ice chest, and a wood-burning stove, there was a dining room table and a few chairs littered around it. Standing in front of the stove was an Elven woman with light brown hair.

Hearing the door, the woman turned to them and gave the man a speculative look after seeing Sarah.

"Mira," the elf man said quickly, "this is–"

He paused, realizing he hadn't made any introductions prior to this.

"I'm Sarah," she said quickly, fixing the situation. "And I presume that you're Mira, this nice man's wife."

"Yes, that would be correct," Mira chuckled. "Pleased to meet you. And the 'nice man' forgot to introduce himself didn't he?"

"Pretty much," said Sarah, cracking a smile.

"Well, Sarah, this is my husband, Holt," the elf woman explained, causing her husband to blush slightly. "What brings you back to the kitchen, Sarah?"

"Ask him," Sarah said, taking a presumptuous seat at the table.

The elf man – Holt – sighed heavily and sat down across from Sarah.

"Somehow, Sarah here grew up without ever hearing of the Labyrinth Challenge," Holt explained, twisting a curl around his finger as a sign of frustration.

Mira's eyes bugged out and her jaw dropped open for a second, but she quickly snapped it shut and schooled her face to something less… obvious.

"I see," Mira said slowly, her mind clearly wandering off somewhere else. "Holt, why don't you go back out to the bar and make sure things stay under control; I'll explain everything to Sarah."

Holt nodded stiffly before standing up again and walking out of the room, giving only a nervous glance back at his wife.

After a few minutes of an awkward silence and Mira standing stiffly in front of the stew pot, Sarah spoke up again.

"So… what is this stupid challenge and why is it such a big deal?"

Mira took the spoon out of the pot and placed it on the counter next to her before moving over to the table and taking up the seat her husband had just vacated.

"How much do you know about the Labyrinth?" Mira asked.

"Next to nothing," Sarah said curtly, starting to get impatient.

"Well, then, let's start with that," Mira fumbled out, wringing her hands nervously. "The Labyrinth has always been a bit of a powerhouse out of all of the Kingdoms in the Underground. Because the goblins are so sturdy and the power of the Labyrinth is so strong, they are virtually self-sufficient and barely need to trade or communicate with any other Kingdom.

"This, coupled with the fact that the Goblin King is," Mira paused, looking extremely uncomfortable, "widely considered to be one of the most handsome men in the Underground, a lot of women have been… vying for the position as Goblin Queen ever since the current Goblin King came into power."

Sarah took a long drink, starting to get uncomfortable herself. She couldn't deny that after her little adventure in the Labyrinth, her taste in men had become dramatically different from before she left. She actually developed a taste for tall men with blond hair and blue or odd eyes.

"About two hundred years ago, the Goblin King got a bit… fed up, with all the attention," Mira explained. "He was probably tired of women only wanting him for power or status, but that's not the point. He decided to set up a challenge, a test that women had to pass in order to become his bride. They had to run the Labyrinth and win. Then and only then would they become his wife and Queen."

Sarah choked.

The beer got caught in her throat and Sarah sputtered her drink, slamming in down, coughing hard.

Mira, startled, jumped to her feet and quickly started patting Sarah on the back, hoping to help, but Sarah continued to have trouble breathing, even though the beer was no longer a problem.

Dear god, _she'd_ run the Labyrinth and _beaten it_. _Good god_, Sarah thought, _if I hadn't been running to save Toby, I could've been his fucking _Queen_._

Taking a deep breath, Sarah tried to steady herself and mumbled out a few comforting words to Mira, assuring the woman that she was alright.

"So, then," Sarah said, quickly trying to find a way to switch the subject, "why did you and Holt look so uncomfortable talking about this?"

Mira shifted under Sarah's scrutiny.

"I-I may have tried to run, when I was younger," Mira said, uncomfortably. "Holt and I had just met and weren't together yet, but I was… interested in trying. I almost won, too, but I didn't quite make it."

"Can you only try once?" Sarah asked, acting like she was just curious.

"No," Mira said cautiously. "Any woman may try as many times as she wishes. I tried three times, and each time I–" another uncomfortable pause, "I came close each time, but could never quite make it. After the second try, Holt wanted something more from me, but I wasn't willing to give him anything more than friendship because–"

Sarah saw the pained look on Mira's face as she stopped.

"Because you were more interested in the status or the Goblin King than you were in him," Sarah said, filling in the bank.

Mira almost looked relieved that she didn't have to say it and nodded.

"Still a touchy subject then," Sarah said, playing with the handle of her drink.

Mira nodded again, before getting up to get the stew.

"So, if you're not here for the Challenge, then what are you doing in the Capitol City?" Mira asked, casually changing the subject.

Sarah cracked a smile at her subtlety, but quickly dropped it as she decided to explain a bit more than she had with anyone outside of Hoggle.

"My parents were murdered about a week ago by a man that I refused to marry," Sarah explained, holding back any emotion that she had. "My baby brother and I just barely escaped with our lives. We lived… far away from here, but a friend of mine brought us here and is helping us until I can find a job and a place to live."

Sarah looked up at Mira to see a mild look of horror on her face.

"Your parents were just murdered and you're already looking for work?!" Mira asked. "Why? Shouldn't you be grieving?"

"I have to take care of my brother and we don't have a home to go back to," Sarah stated flatly. "He's only four, so I have to do what I can to make sure that we don't end up on the street or worse. I'm all he has."

Mira ladled some stew into a bowl until it was overflowing and placed it in front of Sarah with a small bread roll.

"Where's your brother now?" Mira asked, clearly trying to keep from crying as she sat down next to Sarah.

"With my friend," Sarah explained, carefully blowing on the stew before taking a bite. Once she swallowed, Sarah continued, "He's watching my brother until I can find a job."

Mira's lips twisted in thought, almost as though she was considering something, but quickly went back to chatting.

"Well, just a tip," said Mira, "tell people that you aren't taking the Challenge and they'll be more likely to hire you."

"I'll keep that in mind," Sarah responded, eating another spoonful.

A moment of silence went by as Sarah kept eating and Mira sat with her, unsure of what to do.

The next moment, Sarah was choking back a sob and pushing the bowl away.

Sarah managed to hide her face behind her arms as she cocooned her face against the table, desperately trying to stop crying, before Mira could look back at her. Her shoulders were shaking and before she knew it, Sarah found herself sobbing, although she was trying desperately not to.

Without saying a word, Mira placed a gentle hand on Sarah's back and began rubbing it in soothing circles, only causing Sarah to cry harder.

As Sarah regained most of her composure, managing to get a hold of her sobs, she sat up and wiped her face with the sleeves of her dress.

"I'm so sorry," said Sarah. Her voice was quivering and she tried her best to give Mira a convincing smile, but she could tell it was watery at best. "That's so embarrassing. I didn't mean to–"

"Sarah," Mira cut Sarah off, "don't ever apologize for grief. You saw your parents die, didn't you?"

Sarah immediately dropped her eyes.

"I-it's my fault," Sarah explained, trying to maintain what composure she had left. "If I had just married him, they wouldn't be–"

Sarah was forced to stop to hold back another sob.

"It wasn't your fault," Mira told her, keeping her hand on Sarah's shoulder.

Sarah nodded carefully and pulled the bowl back towards her, her appetite gone, but the need for food ever present.

[1]

Two weeks later, Sarah stood in the bar, wiping down a table with a wet cloth during a slow hour. Holt was standing behind the bar playing a board game with Mira, who sat on the opposite side, and Toby played on the floor.

Mira and Holt had offered Sarah a job as a barmaid as Mira was pregnant. Mira was still very early, so she wasn't going to be able to stay in the front for very long. Until the baby arrived, they had offered Sarah the two spare rooms that they had upstairs, three meals a day, and a small wage. Sarah had gladly taken it.

Hoggle had gone home a few days later, after making sure that the siblings were settled in. Mira had been surprised to see Hoggle as she had recognized him from the front of the Labyrinth, but Sarah pretended to be surprised by that and acted like she had no idea. He had still wished Sarah the best and promised to come back to check on her again.

Suddenly, the door flew open and a woman that had come through the bar a few days before, all cheery and optimistically saying that she was going to defeat the Labyrinth came storming into the bar, covered in dirt and threw herself dramatically into a chair and flopped face down on the table.

Cautiously, Sarah approached the table and asked, "Can I get you anything?"

The woman looked up at Sarah with fierce accusing eyes that shone with tears.

"Are you mocking me, mortal?!" The woman demanded.

Sarah jolted a little at being called mortal, but quickly realized that she was only called this because the woman was Fae. Elves were more polite than that.

"N-no, I'm just doing my job," Sarah retorted nervously. "Would you like something to drink or eat? We have some emmental cheese and fruit in the back."

The woman began to cry dramatically and bawled out, "Why couldn't I win?! I thought for sure I could! And then, as though to mock me, Jareth," Sarah fought back a jump at the sound of his name and found her heart pounding like a jackhammer, "came to me at the end of my thirteen hours and told me that– that–"

The woman made a distressed noise before shouting into the table, "That I wasn't good enough for him!"

Sarah kept her mouth shut, unable to respond without making a snide remark about her childish behavior.

As the woman continued to cry, Sarah looked back at the couple to try to find help, but they just shrugged. She looked down at Toby, who had Lancelot on the floor with him, as he stared at the adults in confusion, trying to figure out what this lady was going on about.

Turning back to the woman, Sarah fumbled for words for a minute.

"Well, why don't I go get you some of that food and some sweet wine, then? To cheer you up?" Sarah suggested, not sure what else to say.

The woman nodded quietly, her face still on the table, and Sarah quickly turned towards the counter door. As she passed the couple, she gave a small signal to have one of them meet her in the back.

Holt followed her and once they were back there, Sarah asked, "What was that?"

"Runners seem to like my pub, apparently," said Holt, moving to the back of the kitchen to pull out some sweet wine.

"So they're all like that?!" Sarah asked, horrified.

"No, most of them are only like that after their first failure," he explained. "Ah here, it is. Almost all of our female customers are Runners. They don't like to talk to each other because nobody wants anyone else to succeed."

Sarah started cutting up some of the fruit on the counter and sliding the cut pieces into a bowl.

"That is absolutely ridiculous," Sarah mumbled.

"It's why you don't talk about the Labyrinth or anything to do with it in front of that crowd."

Sarah bit back a shudder at the thought of what they'd do to her if they knew, but nodded for Holt to show she understood.

Holt left the kitchen and a few minutes later, Sarah heard the woman shout, "Just leave the bottle!" before Toby came running through the kitchen and up the stairs.

The look of utter fear on Toby's face made Sarah abandon the fruit and cheese bowl that she'd put together and run up the steps after him.

Sarah found him cowering under his bed, crying, a few minutes later. Sarah realized that the yelling must have reminded him of that night. Carefully, the young woman pulled Toby out from under the bed and pulled him into her arms.

"We're safe, Toby," she crooned softly. "It's okay. We're safe."

She rocked the boy quietly until he fell asleep, then she tucked him in. Sarah would wake him up in an hour to make sure he wasn't up all hours of the night, but he needed some rest now.

[1]

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**Sup guys. Next chapter will be out on April 3rd.**

**Also, in case anyone is wondering, emmental cheese is basically cheese with holes in it. Like swiss. But I think it's harder. I'm not sure about that, but I know it's cheese with holes in it.**

**That being said, this chapter and the next one basically take place in the two years between the William's siblings arrival in the Underground and when they meet the Goblin King again. Time won't be so expansive from that point on.**

**Anyways, thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed!**


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Labyrinth.**

**Thanks to my Beta tmwillson3 (that's two L's), who always works so hard and makes these chapters better.**

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Toby was five now. He was attending school with a bunch of elf children during the day now so he wasn't playing in the bar anymore, but he was still barely speaking. Sarah was worried about him, but she was doing the best that she could, due to the circumstances.

It had been nearly thirteen months since their parents were murdered.

Mira was heavily pregnant now – Sarah had learned that the gestation period for elves was fifteen months, much to her surprise – and Sarah had been looking for a new place for her brother and herself to live.

So far, she'd had no luck.

It was around two in the afternoon now, and Sarah was just waiting for the clock to turn to 2:30 so she could walk down to the school to pick up Toby.

Because she walked Toby to and from school and brought him with her on various errands they had to run, people had initially thought that Toby was her son, but once Sarah explained that he was her brother and they were orphans, their neighbors took pity on them.

Even the Runners had taken an interest in Sarah after they learned that she had no intention of taking the Challenge. The women spoke to her openly and in a friendly manner, occasionally going on about how sexy the Goblin King was and how, if they were given the chance, even if it didn't mean they'd won, they'd jump his bones.

Sarah had started having to suppress a smile whenever the Goblin King was mentioned, because the thought of him now only managed to make her laugh.

No matter how many times she heard him described, he was always wearing a different outfit, showing how vain he truly was. And besides that, Sarah had realized that the Goblin King had created a contest for his hand in marriage like a princess from a fairy tale.

The two ideas together often made Sarah laugh because she'd always picture him in a frilly pink dress and a dainty tiara resting gently atop his giant hair.

Now Sarah was sitting at the bar with Mira, who was trying to teach her the board game called "Rue" while Holt was out shopping. It was similar to chess in that the goal of the game was to outsmart the other player by making strategic risks and taking the other person's pieces. The interesting part of the game was that you could "convince" certain pieces to come to your side rather than just killing them off, which just made the game much more complicated.

"You really were sheltered, weren't you," Mira laughed as Sarah stared confusedly at the game, trying to figure out what move she could actually make. "I can't believe I didn't try to teach you sooner."

"You're just having fun beating me," Sarah argued back, risking a move by putting one of her Four Winds into the battle area.

The door opened with a chime, causing both Sarah and Mira to immediately look away from the game to see the customer coming through the door.

It was becoming less unusual for male customers to come through in the past few months, but it was still a little strange to see this man in the bar.

He was a tall elf with strawberry blonde hair. It hung in his eyes a little as he inspected the bar from just inside the door.

There was one woman passed out in the corner after a particularly harsh failure running, but he just rolled his eyes at the sight of her.

Then his amber eyes settled on Sarah.

Quickly, Sarah jumped to her feet and smiled, saying, "Can I help you with something, sir?"

The man approached her without saying a word and inspected her face closely, making Sarah feel uncomfortable.

Then she noticed his clothes.

He was wearing the expected fashion of a higher class citizen; black, form-fitting pants, a loose blue shirt with a tight reddish brown jerkin on top. His knee-high leather boots were black and when his face drew too close to her, Sarah saw flecks of green in his eyes.

With agility Sarah didn't know she possessed, she slipped past the man and stood so her back was to the room and not the counter anymore, giving her room to back up if she needed to this time.

"Are you alright, sir?" Sarah asked, eying him suspiciously.

Almost as though it flipped a switch, the man smiled at Sarah and said, "Oh, excuse me, where are my manners? Are you Sarah?"

"Yes, and who are you?" Sarah was actually starting to get nervous.

"My name is Lucias," the man said, making a deep bow. "I'm the owner of a tavern in the Inner City called Diamond Elixir. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

_Sounds like a bad nightclub,_ Sarah thought.

"Likewise," said Sarah, offering a small curtsy in return. It wasn't a good curtsy as she had learned it from one of her acting classes in high school, but she received a surprised and mildly impressed look from Mira. "Now what can I help you with?"

"I'm looking for a new barmaid," Lucias explained, smiling softly. "I was told by a patron that there was a lovely young woman named Sarah here who was looking for a new place to live and I happen to have some room above my tavern that is not being used that would be big enough for you and a few of your friends. All I would ask in return is that you work in the tavern for me. Your wages would be two gold coins a day and you would also get as many free meals as you would like."

Sarah attempted to maintain her composure, but couldn't help but give the man an extremely surprised look.

Sarah's current wages were a silver coin a day, which wasn't very much, but it was enough, and besides that, she felt that she still owed Mira and Holt a great deal as they had helped her so much. The question, of course, became, why did this man want to hire _her_?

"Do you mind if I think on it, for a bit?" Sarah asked.

"You have a week," said Lucias. "If you have not come to the Diamond Elixir by then, I will come to you."

"I do have to warn you," said Sarah, "if I do take the job – which I'm not saying I will – I have a little brother who is still in school."

"I understand completely," said Lucias. "Now, I should get back to my tavern before my bartender gets lazy. I look forward to seeing you again."

Lucias quickly bowed to Sarah, then turned to Mira and did the same while apologizing for the intrusion, and left.

As soon as he was out the door, Mira turned to Sarah.

"You should take the job," said the elf woman.

"What?" Sarah was surprised. "Why? I really like it here with you and Holt–"

"Sarah, the wages are much better," said Mira. "We can't pay you very much, especially with the baby coming. You're our friend and we would love for you to come back and visit, but I'll bet you, Holt will agree with me. You work so hard for us and you deserve to be at the best job that you can get."

"But–"

"No buts." The door jingled behind Sarah and she turned to see Holt coming through the door. "Holt and I will talk about it while you're picking up Toby, but you should definitely take it."

Sarah glanced at the clock and almost swore. It was time for Sarah to leave to get Toby.

"As soon as we get back, we'll all talk," Sarah said sternly.

"Agreed."

Sarah rushed past Holt, greeting him briefly, and started jogging towards the school to make sure she got there on time.

[2]

It had been three days since Lucias had shown up in the pub. She had spoken to Mira and Holt, who both encouraged her to take the job if only for the money.

When she'd broached the subject to Toby, he was alright with moving for Sarah's work. He wasn't super attached to his friends and he understood that Mira and Holt needed more room for the coming baby.

When Sarah had gotten up that morning, she'd eaten a light breakfast without waking anyone and left a note behind saying she was going to the Diamond Elixir. She still wasn't sure she wanted this job, but she would still take a look and see.

Sarah walked five hours just to get to the Inner City and by the time she got there, she was exhausted. Most of the trip to the Inner City was uphill, but worse than that, the moment Sarah had set foot into the Inner City, she had received looks of disdain from almost everyone of a higher class that she had passed.

Their looks hadn't been because she was mortal, but because her dress had been crudely patched together where a few holes had appeared and the bottom of her dress was covered in dirt and dust from all the walking.

Compared to their pristine, colorful clothes, Sarah's clearly showed that she wasn't accustomed to living in the lap of luxury.

It was frustrating having all these people look down on her, but what only made things worse was the fact that Sarah had the unfortunate need to ask for directions to the stupid tavern.

When Sarah approached one man in a green jacket to ask for directions, he had sneered at her and told her that prostitutes didn't walk the streets in this area and that the Diamond Elixir was much too high class for a woman of her status. He told her to stick to the outer ring or to go run the Labyrinth if she was so desperate.

Sarah just about slapped the man. Instead, she settled for calling him a pretentious twat and stormed away.

After asking for directions for almost thirty minutes, Sarah was just about ready to give up and go back to the pub when she heard her name.

"Sarah?"

Sarah turned towards the sound and was surprised to find Lucias standing in the middle of the street looking absolutely giddy to see her there.

"Ah, Mr. Lucias," said Sarah, trying to be a little more formal.

"Just Lucias," the man said quickly, giving a quick bow in greeting. "Are you here to accept my offer?"

Sarah attempted to curtsy in return.

"Not quite," Sarah said, trying to ignore the obvious stares from passing pedestrians.

Lucias' face dropped at this, but Sarah quickly continued.

"I was hoping to watch the goings on of your tavern for a day before I took it."

Lucias perked up immediately and smiled broadly.

"You are a very practical young woman, aren't you," said Lucias, offering his arm for her to take.

"I've had to be, but thank you," Sarah said calmly, cautiously placing her hand on the man's arm. "Please, lead the way."

[2]

The Diamond Elixir was a large tavern with three barmaids working in it and two bartenders.

The tables were made of a strong, beautiful wood that apparently looked very expensive, but was actually quite cheap. The chairs were all made of the same wood, but only the chairs lining the walls had cushions on the backs and many people in the bar were dressed very similarly to those who stood outside. It was a slow hour, that was for sure, but Sarah was already very impressed with this place.

Sarah had started up a conversation with a bartender named Keagan who was cheerful and kind and had a million and one stories to tell about some of the funniest things he'd seen in his fifty years of tending bar.

"So, you like it here, then, huh?" Sarah asked casually leaning on the bar. "As a work place, I mean?"

"In many respects, yes," Keagan said with a smile. "You have to get past the fact that most patrons that walk in were born with a silver spoon in their mouth and many think that means they have a silver tongue, but most are decent people."

"Oh really?"

"Yes," Keagan thought for a moment. "You know, one time there was a bloke who came in here after a particularly rough day. He was horribly depressed and was already half drunk when he arrived, and all because some girl he'd been infatuated with for almost a year had rejected him. He swore up and down that he had offered her the world, damn near proposed to her, but she had turned him down flat."

A flash of the Goblin King dressed in all white passed through Sarah's mind, but she quickly shoved the thought away.

"What happened?" Sarah asked.

"Well, needless to say he got blasted," said Keagan, leaning in a little and lowering his voice. "He ordered a bottle's worth of whiskey and tried to drown away his sorrows. If he wasn't such a proud man he would have started crying. Instead he and the Crown Prince started singing shanties for the rest of the night on top of the bar."

Sarah giggled. She couldn't help but imagine the Goblin King and some handsome elf prince standing on top of the bar, singing some corny songs on the top of their lungs. She knew it probably wasn't the Goblin King but it still made her smile.

"So, love, what are you doing here?" Keagan asked. "After all, you came in with the boss."

_He's a bartender_, Sarah thought to herself, brushing off her urge to bristle. _It's practically his job to pry_.

"He said he was looking at hiring someone new," Sarah explained. "Said a patron had seen me at my current job and I might be a good fit for the place. I wanted to take a look before I decided to actually work here."

"You've got a good head on your shoulders, lassy," Keagan praised. "Keep thinkin' like that. You'll find yourself a good husband in no time."

Sarah cringed a little at that.

Keagan immediately cocked an eyebrow, but chose to say nothing.

A few minutes passed in silence, Keagan waiting for Sarah to say something, but the girl said nothing.

"Keagan! Two ales at the usual table!" A man shouted from the door.

"Right away, Your Highness!"

Quickly, Keagan worked the tap and poured two glasses full of an amber ale and placed them in front of Sarah.

"Rather than sit around watching," said Keagan, "why don't you find out what this crowd is like firsthand."

Sarah looked between Keagan's warm smile and the beers for a second before deciding.

"What the hell."

Picking up the glasses, Sarah turned around and saw the two who had just walked through the door, a pair of black haired, silver-eyed elves, a man and a woman. They were deep in discussion, glaring at each other like they were debating something.

As Sarah placed the beers in front of them, she asked, "How's your day been so far?"

Startled, the pair looked up at Sarah's smiling face with wide eyes.

"Which one of us are you asking?" The woman asked, her eyes darting to the man beside her – presumably her brother based on how similar they looked.

"Both," Sarah said easily.

They exchanged a quick look before saying in unison, "It's been difficult."

Sarah cracked a smile and tried to hide it behind her hand, but the man caught it and had to suppress a smile of his own.

"Well, hopefully the drinks help," Sarah said. "Best of luck, you two."

"Wait, are you new?" The man asked quickly.

"Not sure yet," she answered honestly. "I'm still considering taking the job."

"Do it," the woman said before her brother could speak. "I don't know about him," she gestured towards her brother with her thumb, "but I'd certainly like to see a cutie like you around again."

Sarah raised her eyebrows and laughed before turning away and heading back to the bar.

[2]

At around seven that evening, Sarah had been working and chatting with the patrons for about six hours. She had met a few dukes and duchesses, several lords and ladies, and a great deal of Knights. Several men (and a few women) had flirted openly with her, but Sarah's response was always the same; either a polite refusal or a clear sign that she didn't take their advances seriously.

Because of her clothing and clear position as a barmaid, she was not given a great deal of respect by most patrons, but her demeanor immediately charmed the vast majority of the patrons that she came in contact with.

As Sarah reached the bar again, an old Duke who'd been chatting her up all night and whose face was red from the alcohol turned to her.

"Sarah, dear! I just had the perfect idea!" He said, laughing. "You should become my third wife! You're so pretty that, when I die, you'd keep my wealth and status_ and_ be able to marry any man you wanted for love! Until then, I'd have a pretty little thing like you hanging around my home!"

Sarah rolled her eyes and took the empty glass from his hand and the bottle from the counter in front of him.

"I appreciate the offer, Midas," said Sarah, "but you shouldn't say things you don't mean when you're this drunk."

"Drunk!" Duke Midas said, feigning insulted. "Why! I am never drunk! Intoxicated, mayhaps, but never drunk!"

Sarah giggled despite herself and handed the bottle off to Keagan behind the bar.

"Well then, maybe you should get your intoxicated self back home and sleep off the liquor before your son gets worried," Sarah suggested.

"Good," the Duke hiccupped, "idea."

The Duke stood from his seat wobbling a little.

"I hope to see you back here, tomorrow, little mouse," the Duke said to Sarah as he fished in his pockets for a few coins. He dropped four gold coins on the counter and two into Sarah's hand. "You're a sweet child and you could do very well here."

Sarah thanked the Duke as he stumbled out of the bar, once falling into a young man who was preening and making a brief joke about getting a little sugar before being shoved towards the door once more.

The young human woman couldn't help but laugh when the elderly elf turned back towards Sarah and gave her a wave and wink before he stumbled out the door, presumably to find his horse and carriage back home.

"Sarah," Keagan's voice said from behind her. "Why don't you come to the back and take a break?"

"That'd be great."

Keagan opened the bar door and led Sarah to the back door. He called out to the other bartender, Jonas, to manage the bar by himself for a bit while he took a break as well.

Once Keagan and Sarah were alone in the back room, Keagan spoke.

"So I actually wanted to have a little chat with you," Keagan said, sounding sterner than Sarah thought he could.

_Jeez, I feel like I'm in the Principal's office_, Sarah thought.

"I kinda figured," Sarah said slyly. "What's up?"

"Well, first of all, I have a confession to make," said Keagan. "Lucias is actually my nephew. I'm really the owner of this tavern."

Sarah's face dropped immediately from being amused to being confused.

"What?" Sarah asked. "Are you serious?"

Keagan nodded.

"Why would you lie about that?! Why would he lie about that?!"

"It's easier to assess a person's true character when they think you're a simple bartender than their potential employer," Keagan explained. "Would you have been so friendly with me if you had known?"

"No," Sarah said slowly.

"Exactly," said Keagan. "Now, secondly, after watching you work, I am even more eager to hire you. You are very charming and you have charmed my patrons more easily than I have ever seen anyone. Please say you'll work for me. I understand you have a younger brother and I can assure you that he would be quite safe living in the rooms upstairs with you. You would get free food and I'm sure we could work out a way for your brother to go to school and get a decent education for a relatively low tuition in these parts if we use a few of the connections you've made tonight. What do you say?"

Sarah hesitated.

It was a good offer, and everyone believed that she should take it. But Sarah wasn't sure that _she_ wanted it.

"If I do take the job," Sarah began carefully, "how soon would I be able to move in and would I get enough days off to go visit some of the friends I've made in the Outer City?"

"Tonight, if possible," Keagan answered quickly, "and yes. Does that mean you're going to take it?"

Sarah hesitated again and looked at the floor before taking a deep breath.

"Yeah, sure," said Sarah suddenly, meeting Keagan's eyes. "Why the hell not?"

[2]

* * *

**Next chapter will be out on April 29th.**

**Anyways, for anyone wondering when Jareth will show up... he'll be around... in... *ruffles notes searching for answer* *drops notes everywhere by accident*... uhhh... he'll be around eventually.**

**Okay, so, yeah... I'm out of ideas. Hope you all have a nice day/night, and remember to take care of yourselves with food and water and sleep. Bye bye!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Surprise! Hey, so it turns out I misread my calendar somehow, and I typed down the wrong date. April 24th, not 29th! My bad! Good new is, new chapter earlier than expected! Hooray!**

**Now the usual thing.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own a damn thing.**

**Thanks to tmwillson3, who is amazing and is so patient, giving each chapter at least two reads to catch everything. I appreciate the heck out of her. Show her love and check out her stories.**

* * *

Sarah yawned in the dim lighting of her apartment above the now closed tavern two floors down. She was busy stitching up a tear that had appeared in one of her dresses earlier that night while she was serving Loupe his tenth ale.

It must have been two in the morning when they'd finally thrown the last customer out and started cleaning. Sarah had locked up after everyone had left and immediately headed upstairs to check on Toby and make sure that he was sleeping in his bed.

Once all that was settled, Sarah turned off all the lights save one lantern so that she could change into her nightgown before climbing into the inviting bed in the room next to Toby's. That's when she spotted the tear.

In the two years since coming to the Underground, Sarah had learned from the expert hands of Mira how to sew and stitch her own clothing to save money. Only recently had Sarah mastered the ability to make the stitches look subtle or even not visible.

Sarah smiled sadly to herself as she closed the last stitch. Irene would've been proud if she had lived to see this day.

With a sigh, Sarah walked the dress over to the laundry basket and dropped it in.

_I miss pants,_ Sarah thought wryly, trying to divert her mind away from that night and Irene.

Images of blood and her father and Irene's bodies flashed before her eyes again, causing Sarah to instinctively cover her eyes as though blocking them would stop the images her mind was conjuring.

Sarah took a deep breath and sat on the edge of the bed.

Toby had had nightmares since that night. He didn't know what was going on, but he'd seen Sarah's fear and he'd known something awful was happening. Sarah had told him next to nothing about what had actually happened that night, but it had still struck him hard.

What he didn't know was that Sarah had wished him away or that she had defeated the Labyrinth.

But Irene had known.

Sarah lay back in her bed and remembered her time immediately after the Labyrinth. She'd stopped eating and sleeping. Sarah had felt so guilty for what she had done, having realized it was entirely her fault that she could barely cope.

Irene had tried to help Sarah as much as she could, but it hadn't been until she tried to get Sarah to read the little red book that had been her favorite book for years that she realized what was going on.

That same night, Irene made a confession to Sarah; she'd had a little sister when she was around ten years old. The girl had been five and Irene had wished away her little sister in a fit of frustration, but unlike Sarah, Irene hadn't managed to win back her little sister.

They had bonded after that, both knowing that they weren't crazy and sharing the burden of having wished away someone that they loved.

The one thing that Irene had told Sarah was that the Goblin King had never directly interfered with her progress. She had even dared to suggest that maybe the Goblin King had actually held some kind of affection for Sarah, but the younger woman had refused to hear it.

Sarah still did.

A few tears fell down Sarah's cheeks as she remembered all of these things. She had promised herself and Irene to tell Toby when he was ten.

Sarah bit back a sob. In a few days, Toby would be six years old. Two of those were years that neither of them had had parents.

Sarah quickly sat up and forced herself to climb into bed without shedding another tear. Toby couldn't wake up to hear her crying again.

Instead, Sarah lay in her bed, forcing down all her emotions and closed her eyes. Sleep was not her friend, but it found her that night easily enough.

[3]

"Sarah! Wake up!"

Sarah groaned at the feeling of hands shaking her. She knew it was Toby, she knew that it was time to get up, but she honestly just wanted to go back to sleep.

_What are you, in high school again?_ A little voice niggled at her. _Get up! Toby probably needs to go to school!_

Rolling over, Sarah looked at her brother and glared lightly.

"What's up, kiddo?" Sarah asked, biting back a yawn.

"I'm hungry!" Toby complained. "And we needed to go shopping before school, remember?"

"Right, right," said Sarah, pushing back the covers to sit up. "Give me," Sarah yawned, "five minutes to get dressed, okay?"

"Fiiine," Toby whined.

Sarah rolled her eyes. He was always like this. During her senior year, Toby had been a more reliable alarm clock that the one on her bedside table. He was always up and ready to go by seven in the morning every single day. Even when he was a baby, he'd start the day by crying at the top of his lungs at exactly seven in the morning.

Reluctantly, Sarah got out of bed and went to her armoire where she selected a white cotton shirt, a brown corset, and a blue skirt for the day. She still fumbled a little with some of her corsets, but Sarah managed to get the outfit on comfortably without any visible mistakes.

Satisfied with her appearance, Sarah entered the main room where Toby was waiting for her, tugging one of his sturdy boots on.

"Sleep well?" Sarah asked the boy as she sat next to him, following suit.

"No bad dreams, I think," Toby answered, looking up at her with his bright blue eyes. "Not that I remember anyways."

"Good," Sarah smiled, ruffling his hair before moving to tie her boots.

"But you were making weird noises in your sleep," Toby said, causing Sarah's hands to freeze on the laces.

"Weird how?" Sarah asked cautiously.

"You were groaning like you were sick," said Toby.

"Huh. Yeah, that does sound weird."

There was a brief pause while Sarah pulled on her second boot and began to tie it like the first.

"Who's Jareth?" Toby asked suddenly.

Sarah was so caught off-guard by the question that she swallowed and immediately started choking on her own spit. After coughing for about a minute, Sarah turned to Toby extremely confused.

"How did you learn that name?" Sarah asked, mildly horrified.

"You said in your sleep," Toby explained, standing up. "Can we go eat now? I'm really hungry!"

"R-right, sorry," said Sarah. She immediately turned back towards her boot and finished tying it off. "Let's go get you some food."

"But who is he?" Toby asked.

Sarah hesitated. Did she dare tell him the whole truth? No. He wasn't ready for that. It would be cruel to tell him so close to his birthday.

"He-he was someone that I met when I was fifteen," said Sarah, not really looking at Toby and more focused on the door to the stairs.

"Was he your boyfriend or something?" asked Toby.

"What?! No! No, definitely not!" Sarah was mildly horrified at the suggestion.

For a split second, Sarah imagined the immaculate man becoming suddenly grumpy for no reason at all, somehow sensing that there was actually a woman in the Underground who didn't want to jump his bones at the mere sight of him.

Shaking off the thought, she grabbed Toby lightly by the scruff of his neck and dragged him towards the door lightly.

"C'mon, lets just get some food in your stomach," said Sarah. "If I'm right, we have enough for you to have an egg and an apple or tomato for breakfast."

[3]

The Diamond Elixir didn't open until nine o'clock, which gave Sarah plenty of time to cook for Toby and herself, eat, and take Toby on a few errands that she needed to run for work.

One of the downsides of living above the tavern while everyone else, including the owner, lived elsewhere, was that Sarah had to run errands like picking up shipments and orders of things, as well as accept them if they arrived at the tavern, no matter if they were opened or closed.

The perk of it was that Keagan would always give her the money to pay for whatever she needed to pick up or was delivered, and Sarah was allowed to keep whatever spare change was left. It was rarely anything extravagant, but it was usually enough for Sarah to get Toby a treat from the sweets shop or something like that.

Sarah didn't expect today to be much different.

Today, Sarah was headed down to a small market that opened every Tuesday, just outside of the Inner City, to sell fresh produce and other commodities.

It was seven-thirty now and the sun had passed the horizon about an hour before, but the market was already filled with people.

Toby loved coming to the market. The bustle of the vendors, the sounds, the smells, Sarah never really knew what about it was so appealing to him, but she was just happy that they had something that they could actually do together. Usually, the only time that they spent together were her rare days off when she'd get to sleep in and go to bed early or during dinner.

As they walked through the market, Sarah kept her eye out for what Keagan asked her to find; a man named Rhokal, a rare male nymph who sold exceptional wines and unusual liquors.

This was hardly the first time that she had met Rhokal. In fact, she had been the one to find him for Keagan in the first place, and Keagan had found that Rhokal was an invaluable asset to the tavern.

As they passed a toy vendor, Sarah allowed Toby to stop and take a look at some of the toys. There were mostly toy soldiers made of tin, but Sarah could see Toby eying a few that looked like some of the goblins that Sarah had fought in the Goblin City.

"Like what'cha see, laddie?" asked the kindly old vendor. "Most youngins around yer age tend to prefer the soldier over the goblins. May I say that'cha have some mighty fine taste thar."

"They look like fun to play with," Toby agreed, gently picking up on with a colander for a helmet. "This one looks like something mom used to use all the time."

"Ah, really?!" The old man asked, interested. "I saw a goblin wearin' one a few years back when their King came to visit our King. They snuck through, followin' 'im and one was wearing a hat just like that. Do ye know it's called?"

Toby shook his head.

"Well, maybe ye should just ask yer perty mum 'ere!" the old man gave Sarah a smile missing several teeth. "Ye wouldn't happen to know what it's called, would ye?"

Sarah gave the man a tight smile and said, "Actually, I'm his sister. Our mother passed away a few years ago."

"Oh!" the old man immediately looked taken aback. "I'm so sorry! Tell ye what, I'll give ye that toy for half price! Whatta ye say?"

"Please, Sarah?" Toby looked up at her with pleading eyes.

Sarah bit her lip in thought.

"Only if we have enough on the way to school, okay?"

Toby looked a little disappointed, but nodded.

"It was nice to meet you, sir," Sarah said.

"Best of luck, missy!"

Sarah quickly took Toby's hand and pulled the moping boy along beside her. He knew that he couldn't have every toy he wanted because their situation required a fair amount of saving on Sarah's part. She just wanted to make sure they had enough money in case they needed to run. Sarah felt guilty, but there really wasn't much that she could do.

Soon enough, Sarah spotted Rhokal and he was already smiling and waving at them.

"Good morning, Sarah," said Rhokal. "And Toby! You're always getting bigger every time I see you!"

Toby rolled his eyes, smiling a little.

"You're in an awfully good mood today," noted Sarah. "You got something good for me?"

"I have something very exciting and very rare that I think your boss is going to love," Rhokal said, leaning in as though to indicate secrecy. "A rare, golden nectar from a flower known as the Sun Flute. You can't make anything out of it, but you put one tiny drop into peach wine, and it instantly makes the drinker calm and happy. Only one drop per person per day, though, or else they may go into a state of such heightened bliss they get stupid or it becomes an extreme aphrodisiac."

"What's an aphro-de-zee-ac?" asked Toby.

Rhokal gave Sarah a look that said, "oh boy."

Sarah could only shrug in response.

"It's an adult thing used for adult activities, young man," Rhokal explained, giving Toby a light tap on the nose. "You'll understand when you're older."

Toby scrunched up his face in a displeased expression.

Rhokal chuckled.

"Here, I brought this for you, since it's your birthday in a few days," said Rhokal, reaching into a pouch on his belt. "Hold out your hands."

Toby complied and Rhokal dropped a piece of candy into the boy's hand.

"That candy will give you sweet dreams if you eat it before you sleep," Rhokal promised, giving Toby a wink. "So make sure to save it until just before bed."

Toby nodded solemnly and placed it gently into a pocket on the inside of his vest.

"Now, back to business," Rhokal said, giving his best charming smile to Sarah. It never worked on Sarah, and he knew that, but he did so anyways. "Let's say, three platinum pieces for the bottle."

"Let me see it," Sarah said.

Rhokal looked around cautiously and then pulled out a bottle about the size of a baseball.

"That's not much for three platinum," stated Sarah. "But because it's so rare, how about… thirty gold."

Keagan usually gave Sarah fifty gold total, and rarely anything over. Sarah had been so tired the night before that she didn't even bother to count the money he'd given her today. She doubted there was anything more.

"Because I like you, I'll drop it to two platinum," Rhokal offered.

"Forty gold."

"One platinum and twenty-five gold."

"Forty-five gold."

Rhokal pinched his face up a little.

"One platinum – but that's the lowest I'll go," Rhokal said. "Final offer."

Sarah covered her mouth with one hand in thought and eyed his wares slowly.

"Throw in that bottle of peach wine and we've got a deal," Sarah said, indicating the bottle she wanted.

Rhokal hesitated, but offered his hand to Sarah. "Deal."

Sarah shook Rhokal's hand with a smile and quickly pulled out the coin purse she carried in a pouch on her belt. When she opened it, Sarah's eyes bugged out a little, but she quickly covered before Rhokal caught sight of her face.

Quickly, Sarah pulled out one platinum from the purse and pressed it into Rhokal's hand as he handed her a small bag with the bottles inside.

"Pleasure doing business with you," Sarah said, taking Toby's hand again.

"Likewise," Rhokal said with a smile.

As the siblings walked away, Sarah leaned down to Toby.

"Hey, do you still want one of those goblin toys?" she whispered.

Toby looked up at her with hopeful eyes, causing Sarah to chuckle.

"I just got a special bonus," Sarah informed the little boy. "So you can pick out two of the toys, but they're your birthday present, okay?"

Toby nodded emphatically, causing Sarah to smile even wider, drawing the gaze of two young stall vendors who stared openly at her for a moment before going back to their business.

[3]

* * *

***gathers notes together* Okay! So first of all, according to my notes, next chapter will be out May 15th. Also, double checked and it looks like Jareth is finally going to show his pretty, pretty face in the next chapter! Hooray!**

**Anyhoo, thanks for reading, and I hope to see you in the next chapter! :D**


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Let's see here... uh-huh... yep... mm-hm... whelp, according to these documents, I don't own Labyrinth.**

**Thanks to my Beta, tmwillson3. She's so amazing with all the work she puts in. Give her a look if you have a chance.**

**Also, I think there might have been a slight misunderstanding with what I said in the authors note last time. Check in at the bottom and I'll explain.**

* * *

Jareth sat in the middle of a horde of goblins and chickens tapping his riding crop against his black leather boot. Agitation practically seeped out of him as he used a crystal to scour the mortal world again, hoping for some sign of her after all this time.

It had been six-hundred-seventy-two days since he had checked in on Sarah through one of his crystals and had found her missing from the Aboveground. Worse, he'd found her home covered in blood and the bodies of her father and stepmother lying in the kitchen.

As soon as he'd seen this, Jareth had gone to the mortal world, scoured their home from top to bottom, calling her name, searching for any sign of her or her brother, but there was none. The only sign that she might have even been there was the fact that her mirror was smashed, but Jareth didn't know how to explain that.

The Goblin King had even gone so far as to disguising himself as a human and calling their police, claiming to be a friend of Robert's in order to get them to trust him. Jareth had informed the police of the missing siblings, and had even gone so far as to keep investigating himself by asking the neighbors if they had seen or heard something, coaxing the answers he had wanted out of them with magic.

The only information that Jareth had been able to glean was that one of Sarah's suitors hadn't taken her rejection well and had stalked the girl. The night that Sarah had gone missing, apparently this young male had been spotted in the neighborhood, and it was suspected by the police that this male had killed the whole family, but taken the girl and her brother to make it look like something else.

But Jareth refused to believe that.

There hadn't been enough blood to constitute that Sarah had passed from this world.

He had counted each day that she was missing, had scoured and searched the Aboveground every free moment that he had, but still had no sign of her.

In his desperation to find her, Jareth had entertained the idea that it was possible that Sarah had either escaped to the Underground or had been kidnapped by magic, using her suitor as a scapegoat.

The only problem with this was that, unlike with the Aboveground, Jareth could not search the other Kingdoms with his crystals the same way that he did the Above. Magic made it so that, unless he was invited to watch or speak to someone, he would not be able to find them unless by more traditional means.

Honestly, Jareth was clinging to the last dregs of hope and patience that he could muster.

Jareth had even shaken down the dwarf – Hummel – to see if he'd known where Sarah was. The dwarf had denied any knowledge of Sarah being in the Underground, he'd even appeared surprised that she might be.

The goblins suddenly seemed to pick up in volume and the intensity of their chaos, causing Jareth to unintentionally shatter the crystal in his frustration.

Before Jareth could stand up to scream at the goblins to get out of his throne room, they all scarpered, a few running into each other and falling over in their frantic attempts to escape.

Despite them, Jareth still got to his feet, walked over to a wall and kicked it violently, causing large cracks to form.

Just as Jareth began to curse violently, a child's voice spoke from behind him.

"What is the matter, my King?"

Jareth whirled around to find the source of the voice and found an androgynous looking child with sandy, chin length hair and pale brown eyes staring at him. The child was perched precariously on the back of the Goblin King's throne.

The Goblin King's scowl deepened.

"You know perfectly well what's wrong," Jareth hissed at the child.

"My King, that girl has been missing for nearly two years," the child said. "Perhaps you should forget about her and find another woman who catches your fancy. Why, there was a young woman who looked your type who ran just a few weeks ago! Perhaps you could–"

"Silence _spiorad beaga_," the Goblin King commanded.

"Your Majesty, just because you keep looking for the girl does not mean that she's still alive," the child responded, climbing down carefully. "You must give up on finding her."

"I will not," said Jareth turning from the child.

The child sighed.

"When the question becomes 'who is the child of the two of us' and the answer is not I, then we have a problem," the child muttered under its breath.

Jareth clenched his fists in response but said nothing. Only the creak of his leather gloves gave the child any indication that the man was mad.

"My King, I can only urge you to move on; I cannot dictate your actions," the child said. "So long as you continue to run this Kingdom, I will not be bothered. Just keep in mind that we need a Queen."

"That's all I've had in mind," said Jareth.

The child sighed once more. The man was stubborn, and pining after a woman that was probably dead, but what did it know.

"Is there a reason you've shown yourself at this time?" asked the Goblin King, his arms crossed across his chest.

"There's been a mine collapse," the child said, their eyes becoming distant as though looking at some far-off place. "A goblin is trapped. The peach trees have reached their peak. It is the perfect time to pick them. And the dwarf named Hoggle, the gardener who lives just outside the furthest walls, has cultivated a new flower in the Queen's Garden. It's rather lovely. You should take a look."

"Is that all?"

"Yes."

There was a moment of silence.

"If you are so interested in me taking a bride, why have you been keeping every challenger as far away from the castle as possible?" asked Jareth.

"I don't like any of them," the child answered. "They're all too greedy."

Suddenly, the child stiffened and turned towards the window.

"Speak of the devil," the child said dryly. "I have to deal with a Runner."

Jareth nodded and the child soaked into the floor, without leaving a trace.

It was Jareth's turn to sigh.

He was going on a trip in a few days and he still had paperwork to finish. With a small wave of his hand, Jareth was standing in his study.

_Back to work_, Jareth thought reluctantly.

[4]

* * *

**Did you finish reading the chapter? If no, go read it and get down here when you're done. If yes, congratulations, you can read this without any possible risk of spoilers! :)**

**I know I'm a tease when it come to writing this stuff, and I kinda enjoy teasing you all, but... I feel kind of bad that there was the misunderstanding that this would be the chapter Jareth and Sarah meet. I just said this was his first appearance, not that there would be any kind of meeting or screaming or even sightings. A couple of people made it.**

**Thanks to an anon who sent a comment that I only got this morning saying "I can't wait for tomorrow!" because I, uh, may have forgotten it was post day. I'M SORRY!**

**Finally, someone asked why I post the chapters so far apart, and to be honest, it's because I write slow. Like, really slow. I write maybe, 500 words an hour, and that's when I can find time and a space without wifi. I used to have a great little writing spot that was perfect until a creep tried to hit on me there when I got up to use the bathroom. I haven't been able to go back in a little while because I'm not sure I'll feel safe there. He didn't even really seem like a bad guy, I just kind of got a bad vibe off of him, so I just insisted that I needed to pee before walking around him.**

**Uh, anyways, I'm kind of slow to make progress, so I like to space out posting time to help me keep up.**

**Is there anything else I'm forgetting? Um... *shuffles notes* Oh! Next chapter release date! June 5th, 2015.**

**Well, since that's it, I'll see you all again in about three weeks or so!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own Labyrinth. Not the thing, the idea, the movie, or anything else.**

**Thanks to tmwillson3 for editing this. It's always great working with her and she deserves your love and attention. Go check her out!**

* * *

_Back to work_, thought Sarah cheerfully.

The coin purse Keagan had given her had contained one platinum coin and forty-five gold as a special bonus for Toby's birthday. Sarah had been able to get Toby two of the tin goblins, a few groceries both she and the tavern needed, and was able to purchase herself a new dress to replace one that had so many stitched-up holes in it that no matter how subtle the stitches were, it was obvious it had been repaired repeatedly. And she even had ten gold coins to spare.

She had tucked the coins away carefully with the rest of their savings and returned to work with a quiet but emphatic thank you to Keagan for his generosity.

Sarah had walked Toby home from school already, and now she was busy scrubbing tables and serving patrons while Toby was in the kitchen, playing with his toys.

The door jingled as a new customer came in and Sarah, who was closest to the door, looked up and said, "Welcome!" over the noise of the crowd.

The man coming through the door had black hair and silver eyes, and smiled broadly at the sight of her.

"One ale at the usual table, please!" he said, giving Sarah a friendly wave.

"You got it, Rínir!"

Sarah quickly dried down the table she was working on and headed for the bar.

"One ale to the Prince," Sarah said to the bartender, Dulan. The human – one of the few she had met since coming to the Underground – quickly poured a glass and handed it off to Sarah before starting on a mixed drink for someone at the bar.

As soon as Sarah placed the ale down in front of Crown Prince Rínir, Heir to the Elf Kingdom, he looked up at her and grinned.

"You're in here earlier than usual," Sarah said, standing next to the table with her hands on her hips. "Did you sneak away from your duties?"

"No, no, nothing like that," Rínir laughed. "Father let me off earlier because we have a guest coming from another kingdom."

Sarah raised her eyebrows and gave him a mockingly interested look.

"Really?" said Sarah. "Well, should I be practicing my curtsy? Or is it strictly business?"

"Business, unfortunately," said Rínir. "Father is only letting me have the night off because he knows that we're probably not going to have a single moment to relax once he's here."

"How long is he going to be staying?" Sarah asked.

"About five days," said Rínir. "Possibly shorter if we can wrap business up quickly. But that probably won't happen because Father will probably try to pass Tulah off on him again, if not as his wife, then as his mistress."

Sarah laughed at the thought of Tulah, Rínir's younger twin sister, being married off to some man. She knew Tulah well – and had been flirted with enough – to know that Tulah's interest was distinctly diverted away from men.

"Does he do that with every visiting dignitary?" Sarah asked, laughing.

"Only the ones he thinks will take her," Rínir said, only making Sarah laugh harder.

"Sarah! Another round of shots!" A man behind Sarah shouted.

"Be right there!" Sarah called back. Then she turned back to Rínir. "Sorry, duty calls."

Before Rínir could say a word, Sarah had darted over to the bar to grab up the shots and then over to the table where the order came from, disappearing into the crowd in a matter of seconds.

[5]

Twenty minutes after she had disappeared into the crowd, Sarah returned to Prince Rínir's side.

"You're going to miss Toby's birthday!" she said, seeming to appear out of the crowd with another ale for him on her tray. "He's gonna be so disappointed!"

"When is it?"

"Two days!"

Rínir's face contorted in thought momentarily. "I may be able to sneak away if only to wish the boy a happy birthday."

"Don't make promises you can't keep," Sarah warned. "Don't visits from neighbors include at least one flashy party or extravagant banquet?"

Rínir grimaced.

"People only go to those things for show," Rínir said. "Nobody would blame me if I didn't make an appearance. At worst, a rumor would circulate that I had a lover in the Outer City."

"Or you could just fake being sick," Sarah suggested. "It's what I did when I was in hi– in school. Especially if I wanted to skip a test or something."

Rínir laughed.

"Odds are I could get our visitor to come with me," Rínir suggested. "He's the kind who hates social functions like that, too."

"The more the merrier," Sarah half-sang as she took his dirty glass. Without another word, Sarah walked away from the table to grab a couple of other dirty glasses and replace them with new drinks.

[5]

Sarah managed to find an hour of time to slip into the kitchen, out of sight of the patrons, to play and eat dinner with Toby. They ate light, as Toby had a surprisingly delicate stomach, went upstairs, played for about a half hour before Sarah read him a story, tucked him into bed, and sung him a lullaby to help ease him into dreams.

Once he was sleepy enough, Sarah left the boy in his bed, with his new toys resting gently on his nightstand, to go back to work.

As soon as Sarah exited from the kitchen, Duke Midas greeted her with an exclamation of her name.

"Sarah! There's my favorite barmaid!"

Rolling her eyes, Sarah stepped over to him.

"Oh, I'm sure you say that to all the girls," Sarah teased back. "So what're you drinking tonight?"

"I heard that you got something special from the fellow in the Middle City market!"

"Huh, well, I don't know how you could have gathered such information," Sarah said, glancing around like it was a big secret, "but I assure you… it's all true."

Midas let out a laughing breath.

"Well, what did you get, girl?!" Midas demanded, grinning. "Let's see it! Don't keep me in suspense!"

Carefully Sarah reached under the bar and pulled out the two bottles, placing them just outside of Midas' reach.

"Do you want to know what they are, or do you want to taste them first?" Sarah asked.

"Taste."

Carefully, Sarah poured the man a large glass of wine, then let a single drop of the gold liquid fall into the glass.

Sarah quickly plugged the bottle of nectar and hid it behind something else so that she was the only one who could find it. She hadn't quite had a chance to explain what it was to Keagan and the others just yet, but she would try to let everyone know by the next day.

As soon as she came back up, she cautiously slid the glass across the bar to the old Duke.

The Duke, following Sarah's example of slow, wary movements, delicately lifted the wine to his lips and took a light sip.

Immediately, his eyes perked up and his face melted into a calm, dreamy expression.

"This drink is glorious!" The Duke proclaimed as well as he could. "What is it?"

"A peach wine straight from the Labyrinth," Sarah explained. Then she took on a half-joking tone. "According to my supplier, it was smuggled from the Goblin King's personal wine cellar. No doubt the finest of his selection."

"And the golden drink?" Midas asked.

Sarah suppressed a laugh as she made a brief connection between Midas and gold, but kept it to herself.

"A very rare, highly secret ingredient," Sarah told him. "So secret, I can't even tell you what it is, but I can tell you that, when mixed with the right wine, it will make you feel as though you're living in your happiest dreams."

Midas laughed gently.

"You spin such wonderful shadows, my dear," he said.

"In all seriousness," Sarah said, her smile dropping a bit, "the secret ingredient is incredibly potent and you can only have one drop a day mixed in with a large glass of wine. So that's all you're going to get for tonight."

"I completely understand," Midas said, his eyes sharpening up a little to reassure her.

"Good," Sarah said, her eyes being caught by a patron waving at her. "Please excuse me, I have to get back to work."

Midas nodded.

"Of course."

[5]

The rest of the night moved quickly, and before Sarah realized it, she was walking the last customer out, a young elf duchess who had run the Labyrinth earlier that day and had managed to make it to the Diamond Elixir before breaking down into tears.

None of the other barmaids or bartenders had known what to do, so Sarah had rubbed the girl's back and asked what happened. She had managed to get the girl to calm down enough, based on experience at her old job alone, that she was able to slip the girl a little bit of laced peach wine.

Sarah felt a little guilty, reminded of her own tainted peach, but decided that it wasn't the same because the Goblin King was trying to make her forget about Toby while Sarah was trying to help this poor girl.

The floors had been swept, the tables wiped down, and Sarah wished the last of her coworkers' goodnight as she locked the door behind them.

Sarah yawned heavily and leaned against the front door of the tavern.

It was well past midnight now, and Sarah had to drag herself up the two flights of stairs to climb into bed, only to find Toby already sleeping in it.

Sarah sighed, knowing that Toby must've had a bad dream and crawled into bed to wait for her. Normally he would come down to let one of her coworkers know so that she could go attend to him, but he did this every now and again instead.

Sarah knew he didn't want to be a burden, but she truly didn't mind taking care of him. They were the only family the other had left in this or any world.

Gently, Sarah brushed back a little blond hair from the boy's face and smiled.

Opting out of changing, Sarah climbed into bed fully dressed and fell into darkness in a matter of seconds.

[5]

* * *

**I have absolutely nothing to say here. Except for, thanks for reading, thanks for enjoying this story, hoping to see you all in the next chapter. In fact, I will tell you but one thing about the next chapter. Jareth-**

***suddenly goblins appear and dog pile the writer in an attempt to stop spoilers.***

***from under the pile* Mmmf! Mmfmmm mmfm fm mmf mfmm mmmfm mmmfmmmfm!**

***manages to get head free* Alight, well I tried. Have wonderful day/night everybody.**


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Don't own nothing. Nope.**

**HEY! TOday's the day! The long awaited day! Thanks to tmwillson3, my lovely Beta, and all her hard work. Thanks to all you readers.**

**But that's right fangirls and fanboys, this is it. This is, at last, the chapter where Jareth and Sarah interact... a bit. I mean- well, you'll see. See you at the end.**

* * *

_Sarah was standing in a room with walls made of glass. Through them she could see shapes and shadows, but nothing distinct until she looked up towards the domed ceiling. There were stars and a full moon._

I've been here before_, Sarah thought._ But when?

_The whole room was opalescent, shining white with pink undertones. There were no chairs or tables in sight, and music drifted softly in the air._

"_Hello, Sarah," a voice said from behind her._

_Sarah turned towards the voice and found Jareth, the Goblin King, standing there, looking at her sadly._

"_Hello, Goblin King," Sarah responded._

_Jareth held out a hand to her._

"_Care to dance?" Jareth asked._

"_Only so long as I don't forget everything again," said Sarah._

"_Of course not."_

_Carefully, Sarah placed her hand in his and found herself pulled to his body a moment later._

_Jareth guided them through a gentle waltz, humming softly along with the music._

"_This has happened before, hasn't it?" Sarah asked, not entirely sure of what she was saying._

"_Several times," he responded coolly. "But never for very long. It only ever lasts until you break the glass and fall back to reality."_

"_Hm," Sarah made the sound softly in the back of her throat and found her head resting gently against his chest._

"_Where could you be hiding?" Jareth sung softly into her hair. "Far away from me. Where could you be sleeping, if we only meet in dreams?"_

_Suddenly Sarah jolted away from him, instinct driving her, telling her to get away._

_Jareth attempted to hold fast to her, to keep her held against him, but she pulled against him. She pushed him away and even ripped at her clothes so that he couldn't take hold of them until she finally broke from his grasp._

_Sarah knew the way that you do in dreams that she couldn't listen to what he sung for one moment longer. She knew that she could not stay here._

_Somehow, a chair appeared next to her, and Sarah hauled it up over her head before swinging it against the glass and shattering it._

_As Sarah was sucked into the abyss, she heard Jareth shout her name._

[6]

Sarah woke with a start, but before she could even register what she had been dreaming, the dream was gone.

Rubbing her eyes, Sarah sat up slowly, and forced back a yawn.

The day before, Sarah had woken up to Toby in her bed and had momentarily forgotten when he'd gotten there and they'd had to rush out of the flat to get Toby to school on time, but today was Thursday.

Sarah had discovered after enrolling Toby into school, much to her interest, that Underground schools ran only four days of the week. Each school would decide what days of the week they had off, and Toby's current school took off Thursdays, Saturdays, and Mondays.

Today was also Toby's birthday.

A moment after thinking this, Toby burst into her room and leapt onto her bed.

"It's my birthday! It's my birthday! Sarah, Sarah! It's my birthday!" The boy shouted.

"Woah! Calm down, kiddo!" Sarah said as the boy jumped on to her.

"But it's my birthday!" said Toby excitedly.

"I know, Toby," she said. "But you have to calm down. I'm working today, remember?"

"Yeah, but Keagan said I could play in the tavern today!" said Toby.

"He did?" Sarah asked her eyebrows going up in surprise.

"Yeah!" Toby explained. "He said I have to stay in the corner and can't get into too much trouble, but I can be part of the party tonight!"

Sarah frowned. She hadn't agreed to this. She wasn't sure if she thought this was safe, but the boy did deserve to have a party.

"Alright," Sarah conceded. "But what are you going to be doing during the day?"

"I'm gonna go play with Jack and Killian!" Toby said excitedly. "We're going to the park with Jack's dad to watch him do magic with plants!"

Sarah let out a sigh. At least she knew the boys and the father.

"You know you need to talk to me about these things before you do them," said Sarah.

"But I can still go, right?"

"Yes, but next time, you won't."

"Saraaaah!"

"No," Sarah said sternly. "This is for your own safety. Do you understand?"

Toby nodded slowly, looking disappointed.

"Alright, now get out so I can get dressed," said Sarah. "We don't want you to be late to play with your friends."

Immediately Toby perked up and ran out of the room, shouting, "Thanks Sarah!" over his shoulder.

With a smile, Sarah shook her head. This was going to be a long day.

[6]

Sarah didn't realize how right she was.

When Toby returned from playing around noon, he was covered in mud, and Sarah had to take him upstairs to wash him and his clothes before stains formed.

She fed him lunch as soon as he was clean and then told him to take a nap before the party started so that he didn't fall asleep in the bar.

At four, Toby came downstairs, and Keagan and Lucias had set up a special table in the corner closest to the bar specifically for Toby by hanging a few decorations around it. Toby had been thrilled and sat obediently in his seat while he was showered with attention and small gifts from her coworkers and bosses.

As the evening crowd trickled in, many of Sarah's frequent customers and friends went over to Toby to wish him a happy birthday before going off to their drinking, dining, and whatever else they came to do.

At five, Mira and the baby, Cíhel, made an appearance at the Diamond Elixir. Toby hadn't had much interaction with the baby girl before then, but today, he played with her a little. Together, they managed to make a large mess of dinner before Keagan brought out a cake for Toby.

Toby had cheered at the sight of it because he hadn't had cake since Sarah's birthday, a few weeks before… _that night_. Sarah knew that she would have to keep an eye on Toby to make sure that he didn't get into any trouble or eat too much, but she still kept working.

One young elf, a man by the name of Celohan, had already had three glasses of what Sarah could only define as moonshine and was flirting openly with her. He was fairly new to the area, but he was already a frequent customer at the Diamond Elixir.

"So, it's your son's birthday today, huh?" Celohan said as Sarah stood by his table. "How old is he turning?"

"He's not my son," Sarah corrected automatically. "And he's turning six."

"Wow! Really? You don't look old enough to have a child that age!" Celohan commented. "You must have really good genetics! Whatever happened to his father?"

"He's not my son; he's my brother," Sarah corrected again. It was a fairly common mistake new patrond made a lot. "I'm still in my early twenties, and our father died."

"That's too bad," Celohan said, putting a hand on Sarah's waist to bring her closer. "You're so pretty; I'm surprised you haven't found another man, yet."

The door to the tavern jingled, and Sarah, quietly releasing a breath of relief, immediately gave a sidelong glace toward the door, trying to keep her attention on Toby as she quickly shouted, "Welcome!"

"Two ales to the usual place!" Rínir shouted back.

"Glad you could make it!" Sarah called quickly, giving him a flash of a smile. "I'll be right over!"

Sarah darted away from Celohan and towards the bar. Sarah loaded her tray with the two ales, watching Toby getting close to the end of his second piece of cake.

"Tell Toby to slow down, would you?" Sarah asked Keagan quietly. "He's going to get a stomach ache if he keeps eating like that."

Keagan chuckled.

"Let the boy have some fun," said Keagan, handing Sarah an almost empty bottle of brandy. "Here, on your way to the Prince, pour the older gentleman in green another glass."

Sarah nodded, but tacked on, "Seriously, don't let him have another piece."

As she was told, Sarah quickly poured the older gentleman, a wrinkled old elf whose ears drooped as much as the skin on his neck did, before heading over to Rínir's usual table, barely looking at it as she continued to keep an eye on Toby.

"Hey, I'm glad you could make it," Sarah said, placing the ale in front of the man and his companion. She barely caught a glimpse of him, but couldn't care either way.

"Apparently I'm late to the party," Rínir laughed, glancing towards Toby, who was being served a third piece of cake even though he had frosting all over his face. "How many pieces has he had?"

"Too many," Sarah said, turning away. "If you'll excuse me, I–"

Just as Sarah started to walk away, she felt the cold leather of Rínir's companion's gloved hand on her forearm and heard the man speak her name in a way that she remembered like it was from a dream.

"Sarah."

The woman froze in her tracks, unable to move – unable to _breathe_ – for a moment. Terror and confusion coursed through her, but the familiar feeling of defiance allowed her to speak again.

"Goblin King, please unhand me. I have to return to work."

"Not until you look at me," he said coldly.

With hesitation, Sarah turned to Jareth and glared.

He still looked the same. From the tips of his black leather boots to the top of fluffy blond hair, the Goblin King had not changed one bit from the time that she had last seen him.

Sarah met his mismatched blue eyes.

"Now let go of me, Goblin King," Sarah demanded.

"How did you get here?" he demanded.

"I walked," Sarah retorted.

"No," Jareth paused and took a small breath to calm himself. "You know what I meant. How did you get _here_?"

"That's not any of your concern," said Sarah, glancing towards Toby as he began to shovel another piece of cake into his mouth. "And if you don't unhand me in five seconds I'm going to start screaming. Five."

"What?"

"Four."

"Sarah, stop this–"

"Three."

"If you would just answer my–"

"Two." Sarah raised her voice slightly in preparation, drawing the attention of another patron at the next table over.

"Fine," the Goblin King growled, releasing the grip he had on her.

"Thank you."

Without another word, Sarah practically dove into the crowd and wove her way to Toby, confiscating the fork and plate from the boy before he could finish his third piece.

The boy whined, but Sarah simply got him down from his chair and told him it was time for bed.

Quickly, Sarah had Toby tell everyone goodnight before she ushered him upstairs, helped him wash up and put him to bed before heading back down to work.

Keagan was kind enough to wrap up the remains of the cake and put it in an ice chest so that Sarah and Toby could have more on a later date.

[6]

As the night carried on, Sarah felt the Goblin King's eyes drilling into the back of her skull as she went about her business. It didn't matter if Sarah was pouring a drink for a customer, giving someone a friendly smile, or mopping up somebody's sick after they had a little too much, she never felt his eyes leave her, though she didn't dare meet his eyes again.

When Sarah approached the bar after helping the older gentleman out of the establishment, a familiar voice greeted her.

"You're certainly an interesting one, Sarah, m'dear," said Midas over a glass of white wine. "Most women would kill to be in your position."

"And what position would that be?" Sarah asked, laughing a little.

"The Goblin King has been watching you all night," said Midas, a sly little grin playing across his lips.

Sarah's smile fell slightly.

"I guess I'm just not most women," said Sarah, refusing to make eye contact with Midas as she stepped behind the bar. Dulan was going on a break, so Sarah was in charge of the drinks until he came back.

"Oh, come now, Sarah," Midas said. "I've been saying this ever since we met. You're a beautiful young woman, and you would do well to marry high. In fact, I'm surprised no man has snatched you up yet!"

"And I've told you, Midas," she responded, her tone showing how little patience she had on the matter, "I'm not interested in marrying anyone right now. And even if I were, I wouldn't do it for power or money."

Sarah was momentarily distracted from their conversation as she made a woman with ivory hair and black eyes a drink called "sunlight's shadow" on account of the fact that it made you feel fantastic in the moment and horrible later. Very few people could stand it.

"It must be a very special man to catch your heart," Midas said with a fatherly smile.

"Must be," she said coolly.

"Do you have any inclination to why the man is so intent on you?" asked Midas.

Sarah gave the man a bitter smile.

"Can't possibly imagine," she said. Sarah batted her eyes jokingly. "Maybe it's because I'm so pretty?"

Midas raised an eyebrow at her.

"Sarah," Midas said slowly, moving his hands to intertwine on the bar in front of him. "It's very clear that the Goblin King knows who you are. Everyone here can see that. He won't stop staring at you, and you won't look at him whatever you do. You won't even go near him. What happened between you two?"

"With all due respect, Duke Midas," Sarah said, trying to keep her cool. "It's not any of your business what may or may not have happened between myself and the Goblin King."

[6]

It was midnight when things started to wind down. The crowd had dwindled to a dozen people, and the Goblin King was still watching Sarah like a hawk.

Sarah was more exhausted than ever.

Between Midas and most of the patrons Sarah had befriended over the last year, Sarah had been asked a million and one questions about the Goblin King.

How do you know him? How does he know you? When did you meet him? Why is he staring at you?

The questions never ceased until she put her foot down by saying it wasn't any of their business and she didn't want to talk about it.

Now, Sarah was scrubbing a particularly dark stain on a table near the wall, trying her damndest to focus on anything but a certain fluffy haired bastard staring at her. Honestly, Sarah would've taken any distraction given to her at that moment.

"Saraaaaah, why've you been ignor*hic*ing me?" said a voice as a man draped himself over her back, his hands snaking around her waist.

Sarah jolted and turned around, trying to push Celohan off of her.

Sarah took back what she'd said about a distraction.

"Let go of me, Celohan!" Sarah said, trying not to shout.

"C'mon Sarah, all I want is a little kiss!" he said. "You're just so fucking pretty. I wanna lay you down and spread you open like the whore you are."

Celohan tried to swoop in for a kiss as Sarah tried to scratch him, continuing to scream at him to get off of her.

The next thing she knew, Celohan was gone.

A sharp thud preceded the sounds of falling glass and Celohan screaming as he was pinned to the table Sarah had just been scrubbing, his arm twisted harshly behind his back by none other than the Goblin King himself.

"How dare you touch her," the Goblin King growled quietly, clearly controlling his rage. "How _dare_ you call her a whore?! I ought to rip your throat out–"

"Jareth, stop!"

Sarah had blurted out the words before she even thought them through, but she knew she had to stop Jareth before he killed the man.

"What?!" Jareth looked at her flabbergasted.

"Let him go!" Sarah said, panic lacing her every word.

The Goblin King looked appalled. He glanced down at the man pinned to the table as he screamed something incoherent before meeting Sarah's eyes again.

"Do you understand what he was going to do to you?!" Jareth ground out. "Do you understand–"

"Yes, I understand, but you need to let him go!"

"But–"

"Jareth, look at me. I am okay. Look around. There are others here – my coworkers and friends – who would have stopped him, who would have gotten him off of me just fine. You didn't need to step in, but you _need_ to let him go!"

The Goblin King looked around at the rest of the bar. The customers were too drunk to do or say anything, but she was right. The bartenders were standing not ten feet away and one of the barmaids was standing by the door like she was going to go get help.

"Let him go," Sarah said slowly. "Right now."

The Goblin King narrowed his eyes slightly at her as he released the man's arms and stepped away. Still, he only stood far enough away that, should Celohan try something again, he could break the man's neck if need be.

Celohan stood up, his eyes still bleary and half of his face red from where it was being held against the table. He turned towards Sarah and smiled like a child.

"You saved me!" He exclaimed. "My hero! Let me give you a rewar–"

"STOP!" Sarah practically shouted, taking a step away from him as he took a step forward. The force in which she said the word caused everyone in the bar to jolt. Her face was stern, and her posture was not that of an average human girl, but her voice alone could have stopped a goblin's birthday party.

Celohan just stared at Sarah in confusion and awe.

"I want to make myself perfectly clear," Sarah stated, her voice clear as a bell as she spoke slowly. "I am not a whore. I am not a prostitute. Toby is _not my child,_ and I am _not his mother_. Your advances have not been welcomed all evening, and I am through being polite to you. If you so much as come near me again, if you try to touch me, I will kick you so hard where the sun don't shine that you will never, _ever_ be able to use your dick again. Do you understand me?"

The man nodded slowly, quaking a little in his boots.

"Good," said Sarah, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Now get the fuck out."

The man gave both Sarah and the Goblin King one last glance before bolting for the door. Sarah almost swore that she saw a tear running down his cheek.

A small round of applause rose from the rest of the room as Sarah took a deep breath to steady her nerves. That took more courage than she thought it would, and it was hard for Sarah to think what could have happened. Then she turned to Jareth.

He was watching her differently now, a softer look, almost like he was proud of her, but the moment Sarah spoke, the look changed to something else.

"Thank you for stepping in when you didn't have to," she said.

"It was my pleasure," said Jareth in return, smiling slightly.

"Well now, if you'll excuse me, I have to–"

"You never answered my question," Jareth cut her off before she could leave.

"What question?"

Jareth lowered his voice so that only the two of them could hear.

"How did you get to the Underground?"

"Really? You're not going to ask me why?"

"You're dodging the question, Precious."

"Well, I don't owe you any kind of explanation, so goodnight, Goblin King."

Sarah started to walk towards the bar when he stepped directly in front of her.

"You're not going anywhere until you tell me," he said. He was still speaking softly enough that no one could hear them, but Sarah could hear in his voice that he was becoming impatient.

"Look, mister high and mighty, 'oh look at me I'm the Goblin King', I don't have to and will not tell you anything, so leave. Me. Alone." Sarah poked Jareth in the chest to emphasize her point.

Through his shirt, of course. Jareth may have been wearing an open shirt like just about every other man in the Underground, but Sarah was not about to make skin to skin contact and get into any more trouble than she was already in.

"Don't–"

"What? Defy you? I've already done that. Several times. So take the hint."

"Then maybe you'll answer a different question," Jareth said, his tone much darker and his expression showing he'd lost his patience with her. "Why are your parents dead?"

Sarah was seconds away from slapping him when Keagan's voice rang across the tavern.

"Sarah!" His tone was urgent, worried, and when she looked over, his face was etched in concern. "Toby."

That one word caused Sarah to bolt behind the bar and into the back room.

Toby was sitting on the stairs to the upper floors, crying into his hands quietly.

Without a word, Sarah scooped the boy up into her arms and cradled him close to her.

"Was it a nightmare again?"

Toby sobbed softly and nodded into her shoulder.

"Do you need anything to drink?"

Shake.

"Want to sleep with me tonight?"

Nod.

"Alright, let's go."

Without another word between them, Sarah carried Toby up the stairs.

[6]

When the bartender had said Sarah's name, Jareth had assumed the man was trying to stop her from saying something foolish. But when he'd said the boy's name instead, Jareth didn't stop Sarah from bolting past him to care for her brother. He knew how important the boy was to her.

Instead, he watched her disappear into the backroom without so much as a goodbye or backwards glance.

Rínir came up from behind him and said, "We should get back. We have a lot to do tomorrow."

Jareth nodded without a word and tossed a few coins onto a table without checking what they were before he headed out into the cool night air.

"How did you know Sarah?" Rínir asked, catching up to Jareth's long strides.

"She ran my Labyrinth," Jareth explained. "But it wasn't for the Challenge."

"Really?" Rínir asked, surprised. "What for?"

"Toby."

"What?!" Rínir blurted out, loudly, then quickly lowered his voice. "You mean she wished him away?!"

"Yes."

"When?"

"She was fifteen."

There was a pause before Rínir gasped.

"She beat you. She beat–" Rínir cut himself off.

Jareth clenched his fists.

"Yes."

Rínir let out an amazed breath.

"I can't say I'm surprised, knowing her, but wow," said Rínir, more to himself than anyone else.

"Do you know how she ended up in this city?" asked Jareth.

"All I know is that her parents died," said Rínir, shaking his head. "She refuses to tell anyone the details. Says it's too hard."

Jareth didn't say another word. Nor did Rínir. The pair just walked in silence the rest of the way to the Palace, both lost in thought about Sarah.

[6]

* * *

**And here we are. At long last. It's been (double checks notes) four to five months! You've all been so patient, and this is your reward. Congratulations.**

**I realized, too, that I keep leaving the next chapter release date at the end of the chapters. My bad. So the next chapter will be released on (shuffles notes again (man i really need to get organized)) July 17th, 2015.**

**Anyways, after alllllllll of that waiting and allllllllll of that teasing, what do you think? Was it just what you were expecting? Did it surprise you? Are you angry that they barely spoke? Are you happy it finally happened? Tell me allllllllll about it. :)**

In truth, as much as I love teasing you guys, I love you all, and I'm really hoping you all enjoyed it. That evil front is mostly hiding my nervous energy that's causing me to want to run around the house screaming. Come back for the next chapter. It's not going to be nearly as exciting, but hopefully it will be fine.


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, blah blah blah, you know the drill.**

**Hey! Guess what I got working?! Yay! I had to do something I dislike to get this chapter up, but I did it! Yay! **

**As always, thanks to my BETA tmwillson3. She's so great.**

**Now enjoy my pretties! *cackling in the distance***

* * *

Sarah woke up to the sensation of being shaken, and when she opened her eyes, she smiled at the sight of Toby, awake and dressed already.

"Mornin' Tobes," Sarah yawned, pushing herself into a partial sitting position. "Time for breakfast?"

"Nuh-uh," said Toby. "Keagan's at the door. He said he needed to talk to you."

Sarah's eyes widened in surprise.

"Really?" asked Sarah. "Did he say anything else?"

"He said it was important," Toby explained. "And he brought breakfast, so I already ate."

"Okay," Sarah tried to bite back another yawn. "Tell him I'll be out in a second. Just let me get dressed."

"'Kay."

Toby turned around and left her room without another word, shutting the door behind him. As Sarah swung her legs over the side of her bed, she heard Toby and Keagan's voices on the other side of her door.

As Sarah was pulling on her under-dress, she heard a light knock on her bedroom door.

"I'm not decent!" Sarah called out, quickly grabbing for the over-dress.

"It's urgent," Keagan said through the door. "I'll have to tell you like this. The King has summoned you. He wants you to arrive at the Palace as soon as possible. There's even a carriage waiting out front for you and Toby."

Sarah pulled the over-dress on and began to button it closed behind her back with a bit of maneuvering.

"Which King?" asked Sarah, trying to sound unconcerned. In truth, her heart was beating erratically in her chest. "Elves or Goblin?"

"Officially, the summons is from the King of the Elves," said Keagan. "I'll bet it has something to do with the Goblin King as well."

"I'm sure it does," muttered Sarah.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Sarah paused.

"Wait, did you say Toby was being summoned, too?" asked Sarah, slipping on a pair of stockings.

"Yes," said Keagan. His voice sounded nervous. "I don't know why. The summons officially says 'the Williams Siblings,' so it must mean both of you."

Sarah grabbed a pair of sturdy boots and started to tie them up tight.

"You're sure it doesn't say why we're being summoned?" Sarah asked persistently, praying for a different answer.

"No," he said. "Not one word." There was poignant pause. "Sarah, I need to know how you know–"

"How I know the Goblin King, right?" said Sarah, opening the door abruptly.

Keagan nodded, a look of concern etching his features. In the time that he had been her boss, Keagan had openly admitted to her that he wished that she could have been born his daughter. He practically considered Sarah such anyways.

"You don't need to know," she said, giving him a pointed look. "I know you want to, but you don't _need_ to."

Keagan rolled his eyes before giving Sarah a stern look.

"If you're being summoned to the Palace, I need to know why," said Keagan. "If one of my employees is secretly a criminal–"

The elf sighed heavily, looking towards the floor.

"I don't need details," he said. "I just need to know the nature of your relationship."

Sarah kneaded lightly at one of her upper arms nervously and glanced over at Toby, who had started playing with his goblin toys.

"The Goblin King and I met because of a mistake that I made," she explained in a low voice. "I think I embarrassed him and now… I don't know. Someone told me that he might be in love with me, but I don't believe that for a second. I think he just wants to embarrass me in return."

"You think that's what this is about?"

Sarah shook her head, "I have no idea. Maybe."

The girl watched as Keagan fidgeted with his hands for a moment, a heavy silence hanging between them, only punctuated by the sounds of Toby's playing.

"Eat and I'll see you off," said Keagan, gesturing towards the small table with two plates on it. One was empty and the other mostly full. "Just promise me you'll be careful and come back safe."

"I'll do my best," Sarah said. "Thank you."

[7]

Looking up at the Palace, Sarah swallowed hard, trying to calm the nerves coursing through her body. Toby was unconcerned, asking questions of the guards and getting warm smiles that the Elven knights couldn't contain.

They were currently waiting for a representative of the Elf King to guide them through the castle and to the man himself.

Sarah was deliberately breathing slowly as she stared down the large double doors to the castle. She had no idea what they were made of, but they were a deep natural red with maroon rivers running through it, swirling and twisting in the light like snakes.

_I can do this_, thought Sarah, taking a deep breath.

She glanced over to Toby and the guards as they spoke and found her eyes meeting those of a young guard. Sarah smiled at the man innocently, and he immediately broke out in a light blush. One of the other guards started making a joke at the young elf's expense, but Sarah's focus had already shifted back to the doors.

One had started to creak open slowly, and moments later a tall elf walked out of the Palace. His hair was a rich dark brown, combed back neatly, and he wore a light gray doublet covered in small, gleaming yellow gems. A pair of wireframe glasses rested on his crooked nose as he turned towards the siblings.

"Are you the Williams siblings?" the man asked politely, as he stepped towards them.

"Yes, sir, we are," said Sarah politely, curtsying slightly out of courtesy. "I am Sarah Williams, and this is my younger brother, Toby."

Sarah gave a small tug on her brother's arm, causing him to look up at the man.

"Hello," said Toby, giving a shallow bow.

The man smiled at the boy, then looked back to Sarah and gave a deeper bow in return.

"It is my honor to meet you both," said the man. "I am Balst, His Majesty, King Daeron's, steward. I will be escorting you today."

"Thank you very much," said Sarah, smiling to try to hide the churning in her belly.

Balst quickly ushered the siblings into the building and began walking them through the castle to the King's throne room, where their meeting would take place.

The elf walked them through many halls, past many sculptures, paintings, tapestries – high-class goods that showed off the wealth and prosperity of the Elf Kingdom. Balst gave a running narration as they walked, telling them about many of the things they passed, the history of the castle, and a brief history of what the King of the Elves had done over the years to benefit and expand his kingdom.

Though Toby listened eagerly, probably considering it nothing more than an interesting field trip, Sarah saw it for what it was – a horse and pony show. All this grandeur and extravagance was just there to intimidate visitors. It was to show a visiting dignitary their wealth and power and frighten a citizen of lower status so that when they finally had their meeting, they were adequately intimidated into fear and respect.

While Sarah admired their efforts, kings did not scare Sarah. They were just men. Their wealth, their power, their status, were all things they could hide behind, but they were only things.

What truly scared Sarah was what the Goblin King wanted her here for. He was likely searching for answers, an explanation for why she was in the Underground. He probably even suspected Sarah of murdering her parents. But if he asked, if he brought it up, Sarah was scared of how Toby would react.

He'd never seen their parents, he didn't know the entirety of what happened. All he knew was that his big sister, who had never been scared of anything, had been terrified.

Finally, they arrived at a large set of double doors made of polished marble, and Balst turned towards the siblings.

"Wait here as I announce your arrival to their Majesties," said Balst. "Once they give you permission, I will escort you in."

Sarah nodded, and the elf quickly disappeared behind the opalescent doors.

Toby took this moment to look up at his sister and ask, "Sarah, are we in trouble? Did we do something wrong?"

Startled, Sarah got down to eye level with her brother.

"Now why would you think that?" Sarah asked, forcing a smile to try to comfort him.

"You always crinkle your forehead when you're worried," Toby explained. "You've been crinkling your forehead all day."

Sarah's hand instinctively flew to her forehead to cover it before she stopped herself.

Sarah sighed. This was about as close as she could get to honest with him for the time being. She had to tell him something.

"Toby," Sarah paused, thinking for a moment. "Toby, when I was younger, before we moved here, I made a huge mistake. If-if we're in trouble, it's probably because of me. But here's the thing; I don't know why we're here. If I am in trouble, I will make sure that nothing happens to you, okay? I promise."

Toby's face deteriorated into fear.

As he started to open his mouth, Sarah cut him off.

"It's okay, kiddo," Sarah promised. "I'm sure nothing bad will happen today. Just relax. Everything will be fine."

The boy relaxed a little and nodded, but his face still betrayed how nervous he was.

Sarah smiled for him as she stood and turned to face the door again, making sure that her grip on Toby's hand never wavered.

As the doors finally creaked open, Sarah straightened her back and looked straight ahead, hiding her fear in every part of her body.

[7]

The room was half the length of a football field, but what bothered Sarah was how… empty the room was. As soon as Sarah and Toby had passed the threshold, the doors had been shut behind them, leaving only five people in this overly large room.

On the walls hung banners only depicting the royal family crest in their colors.

The room felt like a church missing the religious imagery and the pews.

At the far end of the room were three high-back thrones. In the center throne, the King of the Elves sat, smiling and watching Sarah as she calmly walked herself and her brother up to the base of the steps leading up to his seat.

Behind him stood the Goblin King, who appeared busy watching a crystal as he leaned casually against the throne to the Elf King's right.

Sarah watched him cautiously out of the corner of her eye.

At the base of the steps, Sarah made a low curtsy before the Elf King before meeting his eyes. She waited patiently as the Elf King eyed her up and down, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

"Sarah Williams, I presume," said the Elf King.

"Indeed I am, Your Majesty," she responded. "And this is my younger brother, Toby."

"Half-brother, I heard."

"He's still my brother. Sire."

The Elf King cocked an eyebrow at Sarah, a smile pulling half of his face up.

"I see you didn't exaggerate, Jareth," he said, glancing back at the Goblin King. "She's a feisty one."

The Goblin King glanced up from his crystal only long enough for Sarah's eyes to meet his before he looked away again.

"If I might ask, why have my brother and I been summoned here today?" Sarah asked quickly, hoping to end this meeting. She didn't want to be here any longer than necessary.

The Elf King leaned forward in his seat.

"Well, I heard part of the story from the Goblin King, here, but I was hoping to hear the rest from you," the Elf King explained, a kind of eagerness in his face that unnerved Sarah a bit. "You see, he didn't know all the details. In particular, how your parents died."

Toby stiffened at Sarah's side, his grip tightened on her hand, and she could feel him trembling.

Without hesitating, Sarah turned Toby so that he wasn't looking at the kings, and his attention could only be focused on her.

"It's okay Toby," Sarah said softly, pulling him into her arms. "You're okay."

Over his shoulder, she glared at the kings as they watched her in surprise.

Slowly, Sarah rubbed Toby's back as she murmured words of comfort in his ear until his shaking stopped.

Keeping hold of both of his hands, Sarah stood up and turned her gaze back onto the kings, fury very apparent on her face.

"How dare you," she hissed at them, the venom in her tone making the men flinch. "I don't care who you are, you have no right to ask me something like that. Especially not in front of my brother. Now, if you don't mind, we are leaving."

Before Sarah could turn away, the Elf King spoke, his voice stern.

"If you attempt to leave before telling me what I want to know, I will have you arrested."

Sarah managed to contain the urge to scream and yell at the Elf King for threatening her. She bit back every insult and jab she could take at him and instead chose to turn towards Balst.

"Sir, do you know where Prince Rinír or Princess Tulah are?" she asked.

The man looked towards his king for approval before answering.

"They're both in the records room," Balst answered. "They should be going over–"

"Please escort my brother to them and inform them that I am in the castle," said Sarah. Then she turned on the kings, giving them a stern look. "I will tell you anything you want to know, but only if my brother cannot hear it, do you understand?"

The Elf King narrowed his eyes, but signaled Balst to do as Sarah said.

Sarah quickly told Toby he was going to spend time with Rinír and Tulah until she was done here. She gave him a hug and a kiss and made him promise to be good, then finally broke contact with him for the first time since they had stepped out of the carriage just a half-hour earlier.

Sarah didn't look at the kings again until after the doors shut behind her brother. When she did, the Elf King flinched under her gaze.

"Where should I start?" she asked. As harsh as she seemed outwardly, Sarah's courage had deflated. She was frustrated and scared. She didn't want to relive that night, even if she knew that she had to.

"At the beginning would be ideal," said the Elf King, obvious impatience in his voice.

Sarah bit back a harsh retort and took a deep breath. She could do this.

"Well, then, I suppose I should first explain that I am from the Aboveground," she said, shifting her weight onto one foot in a more comfortable position.

The Elf King's eyebrows shot up his forehead, and the Goblin King visibly tensed next to him. Clearly, he hadn't shared this part of the story.

"By the Fates, how did you end up in my Kingdom, then?!" The Elf King exclaimed.

Sarah gave him the look she often gave Toby when he got impatient with a story. When neither man said anything, she continued.

"When was I fifteen, I didn't think magic was real. One night, I was frustrated. I was left alone with my baby brother, and I," Sarah paused. She was embarrassed that she had ever been so selfish. "Well I wished for him to be taken by the goblins."

Sarah waited a second as multiple thoughts crossed the Elf King's face. The elf looked over to the Goblin King who was ignoring his surroundings intently when it finally dawned on him what must have happened.

"The boy who just left–"

"Was the one I wished away, yes."

"So you defeated the Labyrinth?!"

"Yes."

The Elf King let out an amazed breath.

"You are more impressive than I anticipated," he said. "If my son ever asks to marry you, I would certainly give him my permission."

"Even if I was interested in your son, I think Tulah is more likely to propose," Sarah scoffed.

The Elf King burst out laughing for a few seconds. Beside him the Goblin King silently fumed. Sarah didn't look directly at him, but she was sure that he was insulted in someway.

Finally, when he was done, the Elf King indicated for Sarah to continue.

"After I won my brother back," there was a threatening creak of leather from the Goblin King's gloves that Sarah ignored, "I felt… extremely guilty. I realized that I had wished him away, that it was my fault that he was taken. I realized that I'd been a spoiled brat and I could have," she let out a shaking breath, "I could have lost him – that my parents could have lost him because of me.

"I got really depressed really fast. I stopped eating. I barely left the house. I couldn't even sleep because," Sarah broke off. Because she'd been dreaming of _him_. She kept dreaming of that opalescent ballroom, and she would wake up with the taste of peaches in her mouth. "I kept dreaming of the Labyrinth. I kept dreaming of what I'd done.

"Then my stepmother, Irene, stepped in. She was worried about me. She forced me to sleep by giving me sleeping pills, which took the dreams away. She made me eat, even avoided giving me… certain foods because they reminded me too much of what had happened. Honestly, Irene thought something _worse_ had happened to me.

"Eventually, she figured out what I'd done and she told me that she'd wished away her little sister when she was only ten. She didn't manage to win her sister back. She convinced me that by saving Toby I had proven myself. That I had made up for wishing him away. We agreed to tell Toby what had happened when he was ten. After that, things just… got a lot better."

Sarah let that hang in the air for a moment, seeing if either King wanted to add something. When neither did, she continued.

"I guess you could say I lived a pretty normal life, aside from maintaining contact with my friends from my Run, so, I moved into the college dorms. I dated a few guys here and there, and then I started dating–" Sarah had to swallow hard before saying his name. She had not spoken it in a long time.

"I started dating a man named M-Michael," Sarah said in a rush, forcing the last word out like it was a frog in her throat. She could feel her hands shaking as she stared unseeingly into the floor. "He was nice at first. We went out on a few dates. He kissed me, but he… he got… possessive. I couldn't go to work or classes without him thinking I was cheating on him. If he wasn't harassing me at work or school, he was following me, or standing outside my home."

"And you did nothing?" the Goblin King chimed in.

Startled, Sarah met him mismatched eyes without thinking. Based on the look on his face, he hadn't intended to speak, it just slipped out.

"No," Sarah said, breaking his gaze to meet the Elf King's eyes. She felt herself stand a little straighter. "I broke up with him. I refused to see him anymore because he was scaring me. He was clearly dangerous, and I wanted nothing to do with him. But that didn't stop him. He continued to follow me; he tried breaking into my home, even attacked me. I got the authorities involved, and he was arrested. I got a restraining order. He wasn't allowed to come anywhere near me, and I moved back in with my family."

Sarah had to pause again. This was the part that was difficult. Her whole body shook and her legs felt unstable, yet despite that, her body was as rigid as a board. Sarah took a deep breath and steadied her voice.

"One night, it had been a few months since I'd seen– seen _that man_. Things were quiet. Irene asked me to put my brother to bed, so I took him upstairs and…" Sarah let out a shuddering breath. She didn't feel like reliving the whole event for their entertainment, but she had to tell them what happened. "Somehow he broke into our house. He killed our parents then tried to kill my brother and I, and if it hadn't been for Hoggle– if it hadn't been for my friend, Hoggle, we both would have died that night."

A heavy silence hung in the air for a few moments before anyone dared to speak again.

"So, you escaped to the Underground with your friend's help," said the Elf King thoughtfully. "You crossed the desert, came to my city, got a job, and supported yourself and your brother all alone for… how long?"

"Almost two years."

The Elf King nodded, clearly impressed.

"You are a most admirable young woman, Sarah Williams," he said, a soft smile gracing his lips.

Sarah couldn't help but feel angry with the man. He thought he understood her and her life just because of a story she had told him. He didn't know the long hours she had worked, the nightmares, the trauma her brother had dealt with and how she'd had to take care of him while pushing her own pain aside. He didn't understand how badly she blamed herself for everything that had happened.

"Why did you not come to me for help?" the Goblin King asked suddenly. "Surely that would have been easier."

"The few times we've met haven't exactly been on the best terms," stated Sarah. "I wasn't sure I would be welcomed, let alone if I could trust you."

The Goblin King looked like he wanted to say something, to argue what she'd said, to be insulted, but he couldn't. Something she'd said carried a grain of truth, though Sarah didn't know what.

"You are such an incredible young woman," the Elf King said, rising from his seat. Sarah could tell this was meant to show that he stood above her in status. "I would hate to see you wasted in that little pub. I hardly doubt that my son would be opposed if I arranged a marriage between you two. What do you say, my dear, would you like to be the next Queen of the Elves?"

Sarah had to fight back a cringe. The way he said it made it seem more like a wedding proposal from him.

"I'm sorry, but the only reason I will marry anyone, is if I love them," she stated. "Your son is a friend of mine, and I wouldn't want to subject him to a loveless marriage. It wouldn't be fair."

"Besides, Sarah and her brother will be returning to the Labyrinth with me immediately," the Goblin King stated. His eyes were trained very pointedly on Sarah.

"I refuse," she said through gritted teeth.

"You don't get a choice."

"Oh?" Sarah challenged, fury dancing in her eyes. "Do you really think you can force me to go anywhere with you? And even if you can, what makes you think for one second that you can keep me there?!"

The Goblin King's lip curled in annoyance.

"I won't give you the opportunity to escape," he warned.

"And I won't give you the chance to take me."

The door to the room burst open behind Sarah, causing her to jump.

"Sarah!" Rinír exclaimed as he practically ran across the room towards her. "What are you doing here?! Are you alright?!"

Before Sarah could speak, the Goblin King answered for her.

"She is fine," he said.

"Why are you here, my son? You should be studying," the Elf King chimed in, giving his son a calculating look.

"I was worried for my friend," stated Rinír. "When Toby suddenly showed up, I assumed something had happened."

"Sarah requested the boy be sent to you to keep watch over until our conversation was finished," said the Elf King. "She believed the subject matter to be… too much for the boy."

"What in the Underground was so important that she had to be summoned to the Castle?" asked Rinír, stepping between Sarah and the two monarchs.

"I needed to know about Sarah's past and to determine her future," said the Goblin King. The fae took a few steps forwards as he spoke.

"You are not deciding my future, Goblin King," said Sarah, taking on a dangerous tone. "Might I remind you, you have no power over me."

The Goblin King stopped in his tracks, his face unreadable.

"I have determined that Sarah and her brother will be returning to the Labyrinth with me as soon as possible," the Goblin King said.

He spoke as though it were fact, and Sarah was about to begin screaming at him in indignation when Rinír spoke up again.

"Did you agree to this?" he asked Sarah, making her inwardly sigh in relief.

"No, I didn't," Sarah managed to grind out in a level voice.

"By beating the Labyrinth, you earned the right to be my fiancé," the Goblin King said, his irritation clearly growing. "You are returning to the Labyrinth with me."

"I only beat your stupid Labyrinth because you promised my brother back if I did!" she shouted before she could stop herself.

"Which you admit to be your own fault," the Goblin King retorted. He began to approach her once more, like a lion stalking his prey.

"That's not the point! I didn't run because of you! I ran because of Toby!"

"And in," the Goblin King hesitated before forcing out, "beating me, won the right to marry me."

"I don't want to marry you! I don't even like you!"

"You don't get a choice!"

Suddenly, Sarah realized that they were practically nose-to-nose. She saw that his mismatched eyes were due to an enlarged pupil. She caught the scent of leather and spices that seemed to linger around him.

She took a few seconds to calm her raging mind, then made her move to escape.

"Screw this," said Sarah, taking a step away from the Goblin King and turning her back. "I'm going home. Rinír, could you please take me to Toby? He has school today."

The last part was a lie, but they didn't know that.

Rinír nodded and was about to escort her out when Sarah turned on her heels again, smiled pleasantly, and dropped into a curtsy.

"It was an honor to meet you, Your Majesty," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I can't wait to do this again."

Just as suddenly as she did this, she turned towards the door and stalked towards it like she was on a mission to assassinate it, Rinír hot on her heels.

The Goblin King stood where she left him, his hands clenched at his sides. He had been close enough to smell her, to see the different shades of green in eyes, and she had insulted him by treating him like little more than an annoyance.

But she had called his bluff.

He couldn't take her without her permission.

And more than anything, that frustrated him.

[7]

After collecting Toby, the Williams siblings promptly took their leave from the palace and headed back to the Diamond Elixir, hand in hand.

The boy continued to ask what they had spoken of to make sure that Sarah was okay, as she kept stopping to take a few deep breaths. Sometimes when they stopped, her face had turned bright red, but she would always brush off her brother's concerns.

Finally, when they were within a few blocks of the tavern, Dania, a woman who had run the Labyrinth at least ten times and had frequented Holt and Mira's bar in the Outer City, approached them.

Sarah began to greet her casually, hoping that word hadn't gotten around, but sure enough, it had, as Dania slapped her across the face fiercely.

Before Sarah could ask why, Dania spoke.

"You were mocking us all this time, weren't you?!" the woman demanded, fury dancing in her eyes. "All this time, you've had the Goblin King wrapped around your little finger, yet you never ran the Labyrinth for the right to marry him! You were just waiting for him to revoke his Challenge just for you, weren't you?!"

"What? No! Of course not!" Sarah began to object. "I never wanted his attention–"

"Liar!" Dania screamed. "Everyone wants to marry him! You're no better than the rest of us!"

The woman choked in a small sob as her face deteriorated into desperation.

"You had his love and attention all this time!" she cried. "You don't even know anything about him!"

Sarah said nothing, but she didn't need to. Thankfully, Dania realized in that moment that she had caused a scene and quickly ran away, trying to hide her humiliation and shame.

"Sarah, what was she talking about?" Toby asked, looking up at his sister.

She felt his hand shaking in hers. It had been a long, difficult day for both of them, and he was at the end of his nerves.

"She's just upset about something trivial," said Sarah. "Let's go home, okay?"

Toby nodded, clearly not believing his sister, but she had bigger things to worry about.

_We need to leave this city_, Sarah thought. _We're not going to be safe for very long if we don't._

[7]

* * *

**Okay, to those of you that are aware, there were some issues with getting this chapter posted and I'm still not sure what's wrong with the site, but I sent the support people a message to let them know something was wrong and hopefully they figure it out.**

**That said, I'd like to bring up a point that's been bothering me for a bit; general hatred towards Sarah.**

**Basically, if she's not a meek, scared child, people don't like her, is what I've noticed. If she's not immediately swooning over Jareth, people aren't fond of her.**

**But here's the thing, Sarah is characterized by being stubborn, and she's not some meek little thing, she defies Jareth multiple times. She taunts him in the tunnel scene (whether it was intentional or not, she did). And in this ****fic, Sarah lost everything except her brother and had to become his parent and sole provider in less than a week of their parents dying, pushing everything she had seen and had to deal with aside for his sake. It takes a very strong person to do that.**

**People have complained about her being "bitchy" or "mean," especially when describing her interactions with Jareth. Someone used the word petulant to describe her but I laugh because that I can see and understand.**

**What I think these people are failing to understand is that Jareth is pushing her buttons, prying where he shouldn't and has no right to. He may love her, but Sarah doesn't believe or buy that for a minute. Jareth wants things to be easy for him, wants her to love him immediately and have that be that. He feels like Sarah owes him an explanation for everything and that she should be grateful to him for being willing to take care of her and her brother.**

**It all comes from a good place - mainly wanting to make sure she's safe, healthy, and sound - but his execution is all wrong.**

**He pushes a button (a really bad one at that) and Sarah's first reaction is to go on the defensive. Jareth is the one who keeps starting it. Not Sarah in this case.**

**He's not infallible.**

**End.**

**Okay, that was a long rant, and I'm sorry about that, but I really wanted to get that off my chest. It's been bothering me for so long, it just needed to be said. Anyways, thanks for reading the story (and the rant). I hope you all take good care of yourselves and have a wonderful (time appropriate word).**

**Bye bye~**

**Extra note: Next chapter will be release on August 7th.**


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Don't own nuthin'.**

**Thanks, as always, to my Beta, tmwillson3. She's such a great help.**

**Also, all my chapters had been written a few months in advance, so, my next few chapters my be a little more slow going.**

* * *

There had been too many questions.

Too many people knew that the Goblin King had summoned her to the Elf King's castle to speak to her. Too many people knew about the incident with Celohan.

Sarah had been threatened and harassed by at least six different women, not including Dania, and Toby had gotten into a fight with a girl at school that had called Sarah a bad name.

Out of fear, Sarah had decided to spend the last three days hiding out in the flat with Toby, hoping to wait out the questions and curious people, getting updates from Keagan daily to find out if anything had changed.

Instead, Keagan had informed Sarah that, because of her, there was a much larger influx of customers all asking about "the girl that caught the Goblin King's fancy."

At this point, Sarah knew it was time to go on the run.

She hadn't broached the subject to Keagan or Toby yet, but she would have to.

Sarah looked down at the bottle Keagan and Lucian had brought up when they'd been there earlier.

It was the bottle of peach wine Sarah had purchased from Rohkal.

Lucian had poured each of them a small glass as the men had recounted for her some of the activity that had occurred earlier that evening.

They'd told her that one of the Goblin King's men had come looking for her, requesting her and Toby's presence in the carriage outside. Apparently, the Goblin King had wrapped up his business and was intending to bring her back with him. They'd denied her presence, but Lucian was fairly certain the Goblin King knew anyways.

The thought suddenly made Sarah very thirsty, and she quickly poured herself another glass of the sweet wine.

She took a large gulp as soon as her glass was full and glanced at the door to Toby's room.

The boy had made friends in this city; he had a life he loved. Sarah didn't want to take him away from that, but if they stayed, Sarah worried about their safety.

Sarah's savings would be enough for them to buy enough supplies to get to another city by foot and find another flat to live in until she could find a job. They would have to leave behind the furniture. The sheets and most of the blankets would have to stay behind. They would only be able to bring what they could carry.

A lump rose in Sarah's throat.

She'd built a life here, too. Holt and Mira were great, trustworthy friends. Keagan had been more than generous with her. And Duke Midas had always made her smile and laugh. He'd made her feel important.

Sarah took another large drink before placing the glass back on the coffee table in front of her. Then she put her face in her hands.

What in the world was she going to tell Toby? She'd promised Irene she wouldn't tell him about being wished away until he was ten but… but she couldn't just tell him, "We have to move because I said so." He would riot.

Suddenly, a dam broke inside of Sarah, and a flood of tears cascaded down her face.

"This is all my fault," Sarah sobbed into her hands. "It's my fault."

Sarah had wished away Toby.

Sarah had dated Michael.

Sarah had dragged them to the Underground when their lives were in danger.

Sarah had chosen to settle in the City of the Elves.

Sarah had chosen to work for Keagan at the Diamond Elixir.

It was all her fault. Everything.

Sarah should never have wished Toby away. She should never have dated Michael. Escaping to the Underground had been her only choice, but she shouldn't have stayed in the City of the Elves. She should have found another city, another kingdom to stay in, one far enough away that the Goblin King wouldn't find them after only two years. And if Sarah hadn't taken the job at the Diamond Elixir, Jareth would never have found them at all.

Now Sarah would have to take everything away from the only family she had. Again.

"Sarah, are you okay?"

Sarah shot up in her seat and turned towards Toby's voice.

The boy was standing in the door of his room, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, a blanket wrapped around his shoulders.

Hastily, Sarah wiped away her tears and forced a small smile onto her face.

"Hey, kiddo, what are you doing up?" she asked, starting to rise from her seat.

"I had a bad dream," the boy answered. "Then I heard you crying. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, trying to stand in front of the wine. She didn't want Toby to know she was drinking. She did it so rarely anyways; she just didn't want Toby to worry about that with her.

Toby quickly trotted over to Sarah and hugged her, burying his face into her stomach. Awkwardly, Sarah petted his hair as she bit back tears.

"It's not your fault," Toby mumbled into her belly. "You're not a bad person."

"You wouldn't say that if you knew the truth," said Sarah, her voice coming out more watery than she'd intended. "About what I did–"

"You mean when you wished me away?"

Sarah froze. She felt her heart stop in her chest for a moment.

Gently, Sarah detached Toby from her legs and knelt down to eye level with the boy.

"What did you just say?" she asked, fearing his answer.

"You wished me away when I was a baby," Toby repeated, his face unreadable.

Sarah broke contact with her little brother and started to sob into her hands again.

"Oh god! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean it! It's all my fault! I'm sorry! I don't deserve to–" the rest of Sarah's sentence was broken off in a hard heave.

"It's okay, Sarah," Toby told her, pulling her into another hug. "I don't blame you."

Sarah only cried harder as she pulled the boy into a tight embrace. She rocked him as she cried for several minutes until she could calm down enough to take a few deep breaths and stem her tears for a while.

The young woman pulled herself up onto the couch with Toby on her lap.

"How did you find out?" Sarah asked finally. "About me wishing you away?"

"I remembered the Goblin King singing to me," Toby explained. "I remembered the goblins. That's why I liked those toys. I thought they were from a dream."

"But if you thought it was a dream, how did you figure it out?"

"When I saw him in the castle," said Toby, his eyes fixated on the edge of the blanket he was fiddling with. "I realized he was real. I realized that it wasn't a dream. I know you didn't mean it, though."

"Oh Toby, I'm so sorry," said Sarah.

"I know," he said.

The boy yawned loudly into his hand, his eyes beginning to droop.

"Do we have to move again?" asked Toby, looking up at Sarah with glassy eyes.

"Yeah," she said, pushing past the lump in her throat. "We do."

"When do we have to leave?"

"I'm not sure yet," she said. "Soon, though."

"Okay," he said, his eyes drooping low. "Can I sleep with you tonight?"

"Of course, kiddo," said Sarah. "Always."

The boy quirked a smile at her before nodding off completely.

Sarah couldn't help but smile down at him. It was days like this that made her wonder who was protecting whom.

Leaving the wine on the table, Sarah picked the boy up carefully, so as not to disturb him, and carried him to her room, where she put him to bed.

It would only be a matter of days before they would have to leave. He probably wouldn't even get a chance to say goodbye to his friends.

She hoped that one day, when he understood everything fully, he would forgive her. For now, she would have to rely on his ignorance of the world.

Soon, fatigue overcame her as well, and Sarah lay down next to her brother.

Within minutes of her head resting on her pillow, she had gone back into the land of dreams.

[8]

* * *

**Yeah, I don't know what to say about this chapter.**

**Sorry about it being late, btw, the site hasn't fixed the technical difficulties yet. Still having issues uploading, but thank goodness I got this one up, amiright?**

**On a personal note, I got a job so I can finally start paying bills again, so yeah, life struggles.**

**No guarantees on next publish date, but aiming for August 28th, 2015. ****And for anyone reading Dreamseer, I'm aiming to publish next chapter August 24, 2015. Again, no guarantees, no promises, just going to try.**

**Again, sorry about the lateness, thanks for you patience, and I hope you all have a nice day, or whatever is time appropriate for you, at the moment.**


	10. Chapter 9

**Thanks, as always, to my Beta, tmwillson3, and to you all of you readers out there. Seriously, where are you all coming from?**

**Disclaimer: I have never owned anything remotely labyrinth related, so don't sue!**

* * *

The Goblin King shifted uncomfortably in his seat, his body unaccustomed to riding in a carriage for an extended length of time. Normally, if Jareth needed to travel, he would just turn into an owl and fly there, or use magic if he was in the Labyrinth.

As laws in the Underground went, one common theme was that no monarch was allowed to use magic outside of their own realms.

They could not use magic to spy on each other through crystals, scrying pools, or other methods.

A monarch could not enter another kingdom by magical means. Transforming into an owl just barely squeaked by that rule, as it was not an extravagant feat of magic for him.

And any magic that would disguise them as another person was expressly forbidden unless the monarch of the land was previously made aware for safety purposes.

Jareth stretched his legs out across the carriage and into the seat he had reserved for Sarah and her brother. It was for her benefit that he had ordered this carriage. He had hoped she would have agreed to come with him to the Labyrinth by now.

If she understood the danger she was in as both the woman he loved and as his Champion, perhaps she would have agreed to come with him.

Jareth sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

As loath as he was to admit it, Jareth would likely have agreed to almost anything to get them to come to the Labyrinth with him.

Instead he had made a fool out of himself and was now paying the price for it.

Within less than a minute of that thought, the carriage came to a stop and the window to the coachman opened.

"We're here, Your Majesty," the elf told him.

_Finally_, thought Jareth.

"Good," he said, standing slightly and opening the door for himself.

As he stepped out into the bright sun, Jareth resisted the urge to stretch out his legs in front of the coachman. His body was screaming for relief, but he couldn't give them that just yet.

Just as ordered, the coachman had brought them to the dwarf's hovel at the edge of the Labyrinth.

Jareth turned to the young coachman once the carriage was shut behind him, and with a twist of his wrist, summoned a small bag with four platinum coins inside.

With a quick toss, the elf had received his payment.

"You may leave now," said the Goblin King. "I will do the rest alone."

With a quick nod, the coachman turned the horses and quickly guided the carriage away from the Goblin King and the Labyrinth.

As soon as they were far enough away, Jareth quickly stretched his legs to relieve the aching, even if only marginally.

He would have spent the next ten minutes just stretching, but there was a dwarf inside the house that needed to learn his place.

[9]

Jareth knocked lightly on the door to the hovel.

He had changed his clothes to appear more intimidating for the dwarf's benefit. The faster the coward spoke, the easier this would be on him.

On the other side of the door, there were the sounds of shuffling and moving, then the heavy sounds of boots against the floor.

When Hoggle opened the door, his face immediately changed from mild annoyance to panic.

"Yer Majesty!" the dwarf yelped. "What're you doin' here!"

"You have some explaining to do, Hogsworth," said the Goblin King, quickly walking past the dwarf and into the house.

"About w-what, Yer Majesty?"

"I met Sarah in the Capitol City of the Elves," said Jareth as he casually threw himself in an easy chair next to the fire, as though this was his home, not Hoggle's. The dwarf's face contorted in fear. "You lied to me, Higgle."

Hoggle began to shake in fear before his King, but he straightened himself, trying to appear brave.

"If you've done anythin' to her or Toby-" Hoggle started before Jareth cut him off.

"I would never harm them," stated Jareth, dismissing his worry with a wave of his hand. "You should be more concerned about yourself."

Hoggle's breathing became faster, but Jareth ignored him in favor of summoning a crystal to twist in his hands.

"You lied to me about Sarah's whereabouts," said Jareth. "Why?"

"She was scared," Hoggle explained. "I only wanted to help 'er."

Suddenly, Jareth's eyes locked onto a bloodstain about seven feet away from a full-length mirror. Immediately Jareth stood and stalked towards it. Kneeling down next to the stain, the fae ripped off a glove so that he could touch the stain with his fingertips.

With just the slightest touch, Jareth knew it was Sarah's blood.

"Where was she injured," the Goblin King demanded, the barest hints of rage in his voice.

"Her leg," answered Hoggle, his voice shaking. "Sh-she said she was attacked with a knife; I didn't want to pry to much, so I dunno the details–"

"Silence," said Jareth, not even bothering to raise his voice. "I've heard enough."

The Goblin King stood and started towards the door.

Hoggle remained silent, wondering what in the world was going on, but not questioning the fact that he wasn't being punished for his deception.

The dwarf and fae may not have liked each other, but they both knew that they had two things in common: Sarah and a desire for her wellbeing.

Before Jareth passed over the threshold, he stopped and turned back towards Hoggle, a cruel smile pulling at his lips.

"Before I forget, Hummel," he said, twirling the crystal in his hand casually. "I believe I owe you a punishment for your lies."

Hoggle flinched when Jareth tossed the crystal towards him, but was surprised when a pair of gardening shears landed in his hands.

Confused, Hoggle looked up at his king.

"You will begin working in the Queen's Garden everyday, starting tomorrow," Jareth explained. "You will prepare the garden for Sarah's eventual return on top of your regular duties. Are we understood?"

Hoggle nodded quickly, trying to hide his relief.

"Good."

With that, the Goblin King turned from the dwarf's house and transformed into a barn owl, taking flight towards his castle.

[9]

* * *

**Okay, rules of the Underground, Jareth stretching (in those tight pants of his, just think about it), and hopefully proof that Jareth is _not_ like Michael in the ways that really counts.**

**Like tmwillson said in her notes for this chapter, "Jareth could probably use a little help with image after their conversation in the castle."**

**That said, I remembered a funny little fact. So I live in Seattle, and I found out that the EMP museum had a fantasy exhibit with props from actual fantasy movies such as Lord of the Rings, the Narnia movies, and, of course, Labyrinth. They had a few of the mask from the ballroom scene and... the costume from the tunnel scene. The brown leather coat, the blonde wig, the tight pants** (which were strangely defeated, I might add),** the ruffly white shirt, the boots... all of it. Hell, they even had the gloves! **(And we all know how much we fall fetishize the gloves in this part of fandomland.) **There was a woman there who got her picture taken with her hand over the crotch. I couldn't stop laughing, and it was pretty clear she and her boyfriend(?) knew why. It was a really cool exhibit, but now I can brag that I've seen the pants and the wig(s) in the flesh!**

**Anyways, hopefully this chapter did the job of kind of... undoing some of the villain image.**

**And so, finally, I bid you all a good night, a good morrow, and a good... whatever.**

**P.S. Next post date goal (I emphasize goal, because I make no promises) is September 18, 2015.**


	11. Chapter 10

**Let's get into this quick, shall we?**

**First of all, as always, thanks to my amazing beta, tmwillson3. She write Labyrinth stuff, along with a few other fandoms, so you should go check out here stuff and give her some love.**

**Second, Disclaimer: I don't own Labyrinth. I did buy the soundtrack, but I don't think that counts towards anything.**

* * *

_"Sarah," a voice said from behind her. A voice she knew too well._

_"Goblin King," she answered coolly. She knew this was real this time. She didn't know how, but she did._

_"Come back to the Labyrinth with me," he said, his gloved hands resting gently on her arms. She could practically feel his desire to pull her into an embrace and that he was resisting it. "I can provide for you and the boy, if only you return with me. Whatever you ask, I can give. Just name it."_

_"You have nothing I want," said Sarah, her voice coming out harsher than she had intended, but she continued, whirling on him. "All I wanted was to have a quiet life; to raise my brother in peace. I had that too. I had a good job. To everyone, I was just another barmaid. Why did you have to show up and ruin everything?!"_

_Her question hung in the air between them. Jareth's face was unreadable, but he watched her with an intensity that she wanted to squirm under._

_The silence stretched on between them, and for a long time, they just stared at each other._

_Jareth wanted to take Sarah in his arms and hold her, to comfort her for all the pain that she had gone through alone, for the trouble he had caused her. But at the same time he wanted to grab her and shake some sense into the girl. If she would only come with him, back to the Labyrinth, he could give anything she wanted or needed._

_If she asked, he would even be willing to make her a servant in his castle. She would be able to make a wage, raise Toby independently, and keep a roof over their heads. Jareth would have much preferred making her his Queen, but he was willing to let her have the life of a commoner, if she so wished. Just so long as she returned to the Labyrinth with him._

_Finally, Sarah turned away from him._

_"I'm leaving," she stated, heading towards the glass walls, "and if I have my way, you'll never see me again."_

_"Sarah, wait–"_

_This time, Sarah didn't even need to shatter the glass with a chair as she had so many times before. This time she just tapped the glass, and it shattered to pieces, pulling Sarah out of the strange dream world._

[10]

The morning Sarah woke up from the dream, knowing that she had told the Goblin King that he would never see her again, she scrambled to gather up all the things she had packed the past few days. She knew that she had to get out of the City of the Elves by the end of the day or else the Goblin King would be there, ready to stop her.

After gathering her things, she shook Toby awake, wrote a quick note for Keagan as they ate a light breakfast, and they were out the door before the sun had even passed the horizon.

Sarah wore a cloak with a hood to help keep people from recognizing her. People who had once been friends were now potential threats and Sarah didn't have time to deal with them.

By noon, Sarah and Toby made it to the outskirts of the city that sat on edge of a forest.

It had been part of her planning with Keagan and Hoggle. Both of them had agreed that going to the Troll City was the siblings' best option. Apparently, the place was similar to the Goblin City, in that it was a bit of a chaotic, bustling city with such a random mix of creatures, ugly and handsome, that it was the most ideal place for Sarah to hide now. It would be easy for her to find a job, and as long as they didn't live near where the royals did, the siblings would remain safely unnoticed.

Because Toby was still little, he didn't have as much stamina as she did, so Sarah quietly sat them down on a public bench lining a slow road and gave him a sandwich she had packed.

Sarah was grateful that she wasn't the only one with connections, as Lucian was able to get her a travel bag enchanted so that no food inside would go bad. She didn't know where he'd gotten it, but she didn't care. She'd been able to pack as much food as she needed without having to worry about needing to forage for extra.

As Toby ate, talking about something he'd learned at school about magic, Sarah only half listened as she carefully watched the crowd. There weren't many people walking around, but those that were, were far too busy to spare them any more than a passing glance. The only thing Sarah could honestly hope for was that none of them would recognize her as Sarah Williams.

They sat there for about an hour, mostly because Sarah wanted Toby to rest up before they started the much longer part of their journey.

The trip from the Labyrinth to the Capitol City of the Elves had been three days on foot. And that was when Toby was five.

According to Keagan, the trip to the Troll City would be twelve days. He had recommended taking a carriage or horses, as it would cut their trip time in half and would likely be safer overall, but Sarah didn't want to risk anyone recognizing her and trying to pull something.

With the trees looming on the border, the mossy ground practically pushing into the city, Sarah's unease only grew.

For whatever reason, Sarah had this feeling that they would meet trouble on this trip that she would barely be able to get them out of. She didn't even know what they would face in there.

Many patrons had told Sarah that there weren't many bandits in those woods. Most of the residents were wild creatures who were either too connected to the earth to live anywhere but in the wild expanse of nature, or were too wild to be trusted anywhere else.

Of course, Sarah had been assured that most of the dryads were friendly and would gladly help them if she asked, but other than that, she didn't really know what else to expect.

Toby didn't really mind sitting and waiting. As he continued to talk, he kept casting glances back the way they'd come. Sarah could see Toby didn't really want to leave, but he wouldn't say so because he knew why they had to.

When Sarah rose to her feet and began shouldering her large pack, Toby quickly followed suit, and took the hand she offered.

Together, the siblings walked the last two hundred feet to the boarder of the forest and stopped.

"Are you ready for this, Toby?" asked Sarah, guilt gnawing on her.

"Mm-hm," said Toby, nodding slightly.

"Then let's go."

_We'll be fine_, Sarah told herself silently as they took the first few steps into the woods. _We'll make it to the Troll City safely. I'll find a job, enroll Toby in school, and we'll be safe from the Goblin King's prying eyes for a while._

For some reason that Sarah could not place, that last thought left an unsetting feeling in the pit of her stomach.

[10]

As the night began to fall on the forest, Sarah realized just how long they had been walking and knew that they'd need to find a safe place to sleep.

It was then that Sarah started doing as she had been instructed.

Sarah began walking up to tree after tree and knocking on the wood lightly, asking if anyone was there. When no people or faces appeared out of the trees, Sarah moved to the next tree down the line, on and on.

When the sun set behind the horizon and it was almost too dark to see, Sarah hoisted Toby - who was getting sleepy fast - up onto her shoulders.

As soon as Sarah had Toby up, she knocked on the closest tree to them – a cherry tree with its blossoms still pink.

"Hello?" Sarah asked softly, hoping someone would respond. They needed to make camp quickly or else things could get dangerous.

Sarah waited a minute, but once again, nothing happened, so Sarah went to the next tree.

"Hello?" she knocked lightly on the pale, flaking bark. "Please, my brother and I are travelers, and we need to make camp."

Another wasted minute later and Sarah moved to the next tree. Just as she began to implore the oak, a voice came from behind her.

"Will ya' stop making all that racket?!" a dry, cracked old voice said. "Some of us are tryin' to sleep!"

Sarah spun around, startled, and was met with the glowing eyes of a withered, dark-skinned old woman.

"I'm sorry," Sarah said. "It's just my brother and I–"

"Oh I heard ya!" the old woman barked, waving a thin, leathery arm at her. "We could all hear ya! Yer just a youngling making a bunch o' racket! Just settle down here and you'll be safe fer for the night!"

Sarah hesitated.

"It's just–," Sarah paused, biting her lip. She could feel Toby drooping on her shoulders.

"We sleep at night, same as you, missy!" the old woman said, rolling her eyes. "Just sleep here, and we'll form a ring around ya! Yeesh! Some younglings just don't understand the Woods anymore!"

Sarah's eyes shot up to the old woman.

"Wait, are you a dryad?" Sarah asked, a surge of relief going through her.

"Of course I am!" said the old woman, looking offended. "What were you expectin'? A sapling?"

"Well, no, but–"

"Then settle down!" said the dryad, waving her hand impatiently at the ground. "We'll throw some twigs yer way fer a fire. Now sleep!"

As the old woman began to hobble away, the trees around her began to form a circle.

Quickly, Sarah helped Toby down from her shoulders and began unrolling their sleeping packs and making a ring of stones for the fire.

When twigs started flying at them from the trees, Sarah had to suppress a yelp of surprise as they landed in front of her in a neat little pile, most of them inside of the ring.

In fits and bursts for the next twenty minutes, twigs would go flying from the ring of trees and into the pit. The ones that missed were gathered by Toby and dropped into the ring of stones. This went on until Sarah had finished making the fire pit, only to stand up triumphantly just in time for the next volley of sticks and be smacked in the head by a particularly thick one.

Sarah tumbled to the ground, gripping the side of her face that was being ravaged with a solid aching feeling that seemed to pulse.

Toby jumped to his feet at the sight of his sister.

"Sarah!" Toby shouted, rushing to her side.

"I'm okay, kiddo," Sarah assured him.

A ripple seemed to go through the leaves of the surrounding trees, and soon the sound was joined by the dry, cackling laugh of the dryad.

"Goodness, girly," the dryad said, trying to wipe the smirk off her face, "Ya really oughta look out! Trees can't aim well, y'ken?"

"Dryads can't aim," muttered Sarah. "Noted."

"No no no," said the dryad, crouching next to the mortals and inspecting the girl's face. "_Trees_ can't aim. Dryads aim fine. Just 'cause they can't talk to ya, don't mean they can't think! And goodness do they talk! Especially when travelers wake them from their beauty naps! Drama lords, the lot of them!"

Finally, the dryad got a good look of the red place on Sarah's face.

"You'll be bruised, but fine," the dryad reassured her. "But tomorrow, start lookin' fer camp _before_ the sun goes down, hm?"

"Right, of course," Sarah agreed, feeling pretty intimidated by this woman.

"Good," the dryad rose to her feet and hobbled off to another tree. "Now get to sleep! We wake ya' at dawn!"

[10]

After eating and bedding down for the night, Toby rolled over to his sister.

"Sarah?"

"Yeah, Tobes?"

"What's the place we're going to like?"

"Hm," Sarah thought carefully for a moment, trying to ignore the hammering in the side of her skull.

"Well," she began, deciding to make as much of this into a story for him as she could. "It's a very busy place. Apparently people are always moving, always working. There are a lot of different types of people, too."

"Like?" Toby asked, his eyes illuminated by the low fire.

"There are lots of trolls," said Sarah, exaggerating her facial expression to look like she was thinking really hard. "Keagan said that they're green, have big black eyes, and big droopy ears like an elephant. And then there are dwarves–"

"Like Hoggle?" Toby asked.

"Yes, like Hoggle," said Sarah, laughing softly. "Though I'm sure they're not as grumpy as Hoggle."

Toby giggled a little at that.

"There will be other humans there too," she continued. "And some can use magic, so they might be able to teach you a few things, too."

Toby smiled at the thought, his eyes clearly starting to get heavy.

"Apparently, some goblins live there too," she explained quietly. "But they don't serve the Goblin King, so he won't know where we are. If he finds us at all, it won't be for a very long time."

Some silence hung between as Toby's eyes fell closed.

For a second, Sarah thought he was asleep and was about roll over when he asked.

"Is the Goblin King a bad man?"

Sarah hesitated before answering.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I don't think so, overall, that he's a bad person, but I don't know for certain."

"He's not bad like Michael was, right?"

Sarah cringed at that name.

"Probably not."

"Then why are we running from him?"

Sarah looked into Toby's blue eyes, at a loss of what to say.

As Sarah struggled to find the words, Toby just stared at her with innocent eyes brimming with curiosity.

Finally, finding no answer, Sarah merely reached out of her sleeping bag and rubbed his dirty blond hair.

"Go to sleep, Toby," she told him. "It's going to be another long day of walking tomorrow."

Toby was clearly unsatisfied, but he rolled over. Soon his breathing evened out until he had slipped into sleep.

Sarah lay in her pack watching his back for another hour, just thinking about his question.

She wasn't running away from the Goblin King, was she? No, she was running from his potential brides and all the curious, gossipy people. She was running from a life in the public eye that she didn't need.

They weren't running _from_ the Goblin King; they were running _because_ of him.

Turning onto her back with a sigh, Sarah couldn't shake the feeling that she _was_ running from Jareth. That wasn't the case as she knew it, but Toby was right about one thing. It looked like she was.

But as Sarah felt sleep start to take her, she repeated one phrase in her mind.

_I will not dream of the Goblin King tonight. I will not dream of the Goblin King tonight._

[10]

* * *

**Hey everybody!**

**So I'm still having some very frustrating technical difficulties in uploading chapters, but nothing I can't get around through some back channels. I just can't upload the easy way. ****Blarg.**

**I'm so happy there are so many of you reading and enjoy this fic. It really makes me so genuinely happy. And this chapter is a lot longer than most, so yay for that! Hopefully you all enjoy!**

**Okay, I'm going to put in a little IRL rant right now, so skip it if you don't really care.**

IRL, I'm starting to have a rough go of it. One of my coworkers isn't very nice, thinks I'm entirely incompetent, and on top of it absolutely refuses to do any of her half of the store duties, so I have to do it all because I'm still on the trial period and can't talk back without threat of a report being filed. I'm pretty sure that's illegal, but I need this job. Plus some a-hole came in about a week ago, caused a big fuss, made some stranger pay for his food, and then stole my $4 tip. So work has been sucky. My car just went into the shop to get repairs because of a minor accident, which pretty much means I'm stuck at home until I can get my car back. And my depression started to hit me really hard about half-way through the day and it feels like it's going to be weeks before this bout lets up for a bit.

**Sorry to unload all that on you guys.**

**Anyways, thanks so much for reading, reviewing, following, favoriting, and just being here. I hope you all have a wonderful (appropriate time association), and I'll see you next chapter!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

**Warning: This fic is rated M for a reason, and unfortunately, this chapter may contain some... stuff that might be triggering, so please, if you are prone to triggers, please read responsibly.**

**As always, thanks to the ever busy and patient tmwillson3, for editing this chapter.**

* * *

Four days after entering the forest, Sarah had learned a few valuable pieces of information that everyone from the bar had neglected to tell her.

For one thing, dryads were not the young, frolicking flower children that Sarah had been raised to expect. They were generally elderly looking women. The ones that appeared young were only saplings or very young trees.

Another was that knocking on somebody's trunk was actually quite rude. It was like poking a human in the belly.

But most importantly, was something the dryads had warned her about.

Sarah had been warned before of the creatures in these woods, the ones too wild to live elsewhere, but Sarah hadn't understood what that meant until the dryads told her.

The wild creatures that lived in these woods were not wild with madness, but rather, had given themselves up to pleasure. They over-indulged in wine, danced and sang all night, and gave way to carnal desires without a second thought.

The dryad of a white spruce, in particular, had warned Sarah that if she was ever in a situation where she had to deal with one of these creatures, she really only had a few options. Essentially, Sarah had to get them to drink enough that they would pass out, or they would have to run as fast and hard as they could.

Many of these creatures had immersed themselves so heavily in pleasure that they couldn't understand things like pain or fear.

But for now, Sarah and Toby were walking alongside a stream, chatting idly with a water nymph doing backstrokes against the current.

"I've been to the Troll City," the water nymph said, crinkling her nose. Her voice was like water splashing against stones. "I don't much care to visit there often. The trolls are smelly. Plus the water there is dirty. There's too much skin in it. It was disgusting trying to swim there."

"Then why do you go there?" Toby asked, watching her arms.

When the nymph's arms were submerged, her arms were nearly translucent or looked like plants growing in the water, off of her body. However, when her arms hit the air, they would change from a dark, rich blue, to a tan brown, then back again.

"My cousin lives there," she explained. "She married a dwarf. I don't know the details, but my cousin's wife apparently grew up in the mines and hated it there, so she moved out and became an astronomer or something."

Toby turned to Sarah.

"What's an astronomer?" he asked.

"Somebody who studies the stars," explained Sarah.

Toby nodded in understanding as the nymph started laughing.

"That's what that was?" the nymph managed between gasps of laughter, her arms clutching her stomach. "I always thought it was some kind of tree trimming gardener!"

Sarah thought about it for a second as the nymph's laughter began to die.

"You mean an arborist?"

"Who cares," the nymph said, rolling her eyes.

_Your cousin, probably,_ thought Sarah, casting the nymph a disapproving glance.

She wasn't sure if the nymph was this dismissive of others' feelings, or if it was a cultural thing, but she hoped it was just this one.

"You're coming from the Elf City, right?" the nymph asked, her eyes lighting up a little. "Have you ever met Rhokal?"

"He's a friend of ours, actually," said Sarah.

"I'm jealous!" said the nymph, flipping over in the water. "I don't know how much you know about us nymphs, but males are rare. He's one of only fifty in the Underground, and he only ever spends his time in the city!"

The nymph made an unattractive sound in back of her throat.

"He's supposed to be handsome, too," she continued. "I don't suppose you could, I don't know, put in a good word for me with him? I'm sure he'd make a great mate!"

Toby was about to ask what she meant by that when Sarah spoke up, cutting off her brother's thought.

"Well, I think this is where we should part ways," Sarah lied. "It was very nice to meet you."

"What?! But we having so much fun!" the nymph said, looking disappointed. "Will you at least put in a good word for me with Rhokal?"

"I don't know when I'll see him next, so I don't know if I can," Sarah said honestly, quickly shifting Toby so that he was standing on the opposite side of her and was no longer next to the stream.

"Well, then why not come to the party the satyrs are throwing?" the nymph suggested. "It'll be fun! There will be lots of wine and love making and–"

"I'll pass," said Sarah, donning her business smile. "Have a nice day."

Quickly, Sarah led Toby away from the stream and the nymph, dodging Toby's questions about "love making" and "mates."

If that nymph was anything like the wild creatures Sarah had heard about, she wondered how much trouble she was going to be in if she bumped into anyone else in this forest.

[11]

Two hours from nightfall, Sarah and Toby heard the sounds of music and laughter… and moaning. Without hesitating, Sarah had directed them away from the noises to make sure that he didn't see anything inappropriate.

It turned out the party was rather large and loud as it took the siblings almost thirty minutes to walk around it, and even then, they could still hear almost everything for twenty minutes after that.

Toby was starting to get sleepy, but Sarah wanted to put as much distance between them and that party as possible. Politeness be damned, she would wait until the sun set to ask for the trees to form a circle around her.

As they walked, Sarah and Toby started singing songs, switching casually between Above and Underground songs. Sarah did most of the singing if only because she knew more songs than he did.

They sang almost continuously for almost an hour when, after a particularly melancholy song that Sarah had just finished, a round of emphatic clapping began behind them.

Sarah jumped and immediately whirled around, placing Toby behind her.

The person behind the applause was a man with almost blond hair that sprung from his head in cherub curls alongside a pair of rounded horns that looped around his head. His chest and legs were covered in similarly-colored hair, but it was so thick on his legs, that the belt he wore might have escaped Sarah's notice if it weren't for the flask hanging from his hips. Finally, Sarah noticed his feet, the little cloven hooves that very rightly shouldn't be able to support his weight.

"You're a satyr!" Toby said loudly, excitement lacing his voice. "Sarah, look he's a satyr!"

The satyr stopped clapping and laughed as Sarah tried to shush her brother.

"A satyr I am," he said, his voice coming out in a drawl Sarah immediately recognized.

After working in two bars in two years, Sarah could recognize a drunken drawl in a second. A chill of fear ran down her spine.

"Well, it was nice meeting you, Mr. Satyr, but we have to go–" Sarah began.

"Oh come now, surely you have time for a drink," the Satyr said, his eyes lingering on Sarah's chest longer than she liked.

He reached down and fumbled with his belt for a moment before he managed to detach the flask. Then he held it out in offering.

"Here," he said. "You can have some wine from my flask! It's bottomless! I got it from some Fae who was passing through the forest. He traded it to me for a bouquet of flowers that wouldn't wilt. Weird guy. So, want a sip?"

"No," Sarah said slowly, starting to back away. "As… fascinating as that is, we have somewhere to be. So if you don't mind…."

"But the wine is sweet," the satyr said, stepping towards her, his flask still held out in offering. "And we could have a lot of fun together."

His face flushed slightly, and a dreamy smile crossed his lips.

"I said we're busy," Sarah insisted. "Why don't you drink some more in my place? If it's that sweet, surely you want to keep it all to yourself?"

Toby could hear the distress in Sarah's voice, and while he didn't quite understand why this man was a problem, he knew his sister. Whatever reason Sarah had not to like the satyr, he trusted that it was a good one.

"Because I like sharing," the satyr said, practically upon them now. "My name is Pirin. What's yours?"

"She told you to go away!" Toby said from behind his sister.

Pirin looked down at the boy, his smile changing to a goofy grin.

"But we can play games together!" said Pirin, his eyes shining in excitement. "The lady and I can play nighttime games, and we can play chase and hide and seek and–"

"I don't want to play games with you!" Toby yelled.

"Toby!" Sarah hissed at her brother quietly. "Shh!"

Toby looked up at his sister, ready to argue with her, but saw something in her eyes that made him quickly closed his mouth.

The satyr looked hurt by Toby's words and looked up at Sarah.

"Do you want to play games with me?" he asked, his eyes begging for her to agree with him.

Slowly, Sarah shook her head.

"But we'll have so much fun!" Pirin said. "And you'll like the wine! I promise!"

"I said no!" Sarah felt like she was talking in circles with this satyr. Did he not understand the word no?

"Just taste it!" the satyr said, practically running towards her.

Before Sarah could start running Pirin grabbed her arm roughly and tried to drag her close to him.

"Come on, it tastes good!"

"Let go of me!" Sarah screamed.

"Can't I at least have a kiss?" he said, managing to pull her flush against his hairy chest and leaning in, his lips pursed in anticipation.

Sarah's mind flashed back to the Diamond Elixir and Celohan. It was like that night was repeating itself. But this would be different.

Without thinking, Sarah brought up her knee and struck the satyr where it hurt before shoving him away while he was stunned by the pain. The flask skittered off somewhere in the confusion.

The next second, she'd grabbed Toby's hand, and they were running.

Because Toby was so much shorter, Sarah wasn't able to go as fast and hard as her legs would have liked, but she continued to drag him along behind her, desperately pushing forwards.

Then laughter rose up behind them.

"I love playing chase!" Pirin yelled after them. "I'm going to catch you!"

"Go away!" Sarah yelled back at him, her voice coming out in huffs. "This isn't a game!"

"Sure it is!" the satyr said, his voice getting closer, faster than Sarah had anticipated. "And I've got you!"

The next thing she knew, Sarah felt something firm collide with her body, and she was falling.

Her head collided with something hard.

As she was rolled over by the satyr, her head felt like a heavy cloud had fallen over it. Her vision was blurry, the satyr's face only barely lit up by the light of the setting sun.

"Now we can play the other game!" the satyr said excitedly, pulling at her top.

"NO!" Sarah screamed, her voice sounding wrong in her own ears. "Get off of me! Help! Please! Somebody help me!"

"Get off of her!" Toby's voice shouted nearby.

_Toby!_ How could Sarah have forgotten about him?!

A small blurry figure entered her vision as Toby began beating on the satyr with his fists.

"Get off her! Get off her!" the boy screamed again and again.

Sarah began fighting harder, holding her legs tightly together, trying to claw at the satyr's eyes and scratch him with her fingernails.

Finally, the satyr got frustrated.

"Go away, child!" he shouted, shoving Toby away.

Toby fell to the ground with a firm thud, and Sarah felt fear surge through her.

Her strength was failing her, fatigue setting in as the corners of her vision started to go dark. If Toby stayed, he would watch her get hurt, or worse, be hurt himself.

As the boy rose to his feet, Sarah could only think of one way to protect him. She didn't want to, but her mind was too foggy to think of any other way.

Before Toby would even take one step forward, the words spilled from Sarah's lips.

"I wish the goblins would take Toby away right now!"

Only seconds passed before four goblins popped into existence around Toby, latched on to the human child, and disappeared with another little pop.

Relief and guilt filled Sarah. There was a good chance she would never see her brother again, but she needed to get him away from this place before anything could happen to him.

But she couldn't dwell on that.

Pirin ripped her shirt open enough to expose her breasts, and Sarah's hand flew up to hold his face away from her. She would fight until she had no strength left, even if it meant the death of her.

Sarah refused to let the satyr win.

[11]

Jareth was sitting on his throne, twisting a crystal this way and that, frustrated and dwelling.

Sarah had blocked him from her dreams, and now he had no idea of where she was, how she was doing, or even if she was safe.

That woman frustrated him to no end.

Around him, the goblins were yelling, throwing chickens and each other, drinking, and hitting each other over the head with miscellaneous objects, trying to find which one made the hollowest sound.

Jareth was about to stand up to scream at them when they all went silent, and Jareth felt the familiar feeling of magic associated with a wish. It was like an itch behind his eye.

Four goblins disappeared and Jareth rose to his feet with a sigh, smashing the crystal against the ground and changing his clothes to something a bit more intimidating. If all went well, he could get the wisher to just give up before they even started.

Then the goblins reappeared, and Jareth froze.

"Toby," Jareth said breathlessly. It couldn't be.

The boy's eyes immediately filled with tears, and he ran forwards to the king, gripping his cape.

"You have to save her!" he screamed. "He's hurting her! Please! Save Sarah! Please!"

It took a few seconds for Jareth to process what the boy was saying, but the moment he did, rage filled him.

Jareth quickly ripped his cape from the boy's grasp and needed only to take one step before he was standing in the place where Toby had been wished away.

Sarah's eyes were squeezed shut as she clawed at the satyr on top of her, who was smiling and laughing.

Satyrs were not violent creatures, but they didn't understand anything but pleasure. They didn't understand things like fear and pain, and when faced with it, they assumed it was like the darkness, something mysterious that could be fun.

Unfortunately for the satyr, however, Fae were capable of conscious violence.

Almost as soon as Jareth laid eyes on the two fighting on the ground, he had grabbed the satyr and ripped him off of Sarah.

Without hesitation, Jareth threw him, rage and adrenaline pumping into his veins as he stalked quickly towards the confused satyr.

"How dare you!" the Goblin King hissed, the scent of sulfur filling the air. "Do you realize what you have done?!"

The satyr looked up at Jareth, clearly confused and terrified.

"We were just playing!" the satyr said. "If you wanted to play, too, you just had to ask!"

Without thinking, Jareth knelt over Pirin and punched him in the face, so hard a firm crack was heard and blood began pouring from his nose.

"You want to play, do you?" Jareth sneered, malice filling his face. "Then I have a game that you and I can play alone."

The satyr only groaned in response before Jareth brought his fist down into his face again.

Jareth felt his fist strike the furry man again and again, not even able to see any more. How dare this creature lay a finger on Sarah? How dare he try to hurt her?!

For what felt like minutes, Jareth struck him over and over, not feeling the ache in his own hands as he took satisfaction in turning the other man blue. A string of curses and insults flew out of his mouth in the old tongue, all directed towards the satyr.

"Jareth."

The soft, croaking voice made Jareth freeze, his fist inches from the satyr's face.

Slowly, the Goblin King turned towards Sarah.

Her shirt was ripped, falling open, evidence of scratches and fighting all up and down her arms, but most alarming, was her face.

There was blood running down her face and into her eyes.

"Toby," she said, trying to move so that she could stand. "I have to get Toby. I need to run. Save Toby."

Jareth shot to his feet and rushed to Sarah's side, catching her as she stumbled forward.

Sarah lifted her head to meet Jareth's eyes.

"Jareth," she said, her voice soft. "Let me get him back. I need to get him back."

Before Jareth could say anything in return, her eyes rolled back, and she went limp in his arms.

Quickly, Jareth lifted Sarah into his arms, and took a step that brought him back to the Labyrinth, directly into the healer's office.

He screamed for the woman to show her face, and the moment she did, she began treating Sarah, saying things about a concussion and superficial wounds, but Jareth barely heard a word she said, only watching her and her apprentice's work, trying to cure Sarah quickly, lest they face their king's wrath.

The only thing Jareth could do was watch, wait, worry, and whisper a prayer under his breath.

"Déithe, le do thoil ná lig di bás."

[11]

* * *

Translation: "Gods, let her be alright."

**Chapter is done, posted, and hooray! Well, as you may be able to tell, we're shifting gears from Sarah and Toby being alone and surviving (which a fair number of you really liked, which surprised me), to, well, more ****romance focused, I guess. We'll also learn more about some rules next chapter.**

**I really don't know how to feel about this chapter. I was excited while writing it, but now I feel kinda... I don't know. I tried to change some things around to make it better, but I can't say that it worked. Hopefully you all like it well enough.**

**I hope you all have a wonderful next few weeks and I'm aiming to get the next chapter up by October 30th, 2015. Day before Halloween. Huh.**

**Sorry, I'll go now.**


	13. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Hey! Sorry this chapter is late! I actually haven't gotten this chapter back from my BETA yet, and I just went over it to see if I had messed up anything. I noticed a few things and changed them, but there are probably things I didn't catch because I'm not very good with this. Sorry bout that.**

**That said, if you skipped the last chapter, there's a small piece of dialogue that explains more or less what happened. Hopefully that will keep you on track.**

*****EDIT: I got the chapter back from my BETA, tmwillson3! So this is the better version!**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter, and I'll see you all later.**

* * *

The sound of soft voices, one deep and familiar, the other higher and unknown, was what Sarah registered first.

The pain came second.

Her head felt like it was pulsing, and with each pulse another wave of pain rolled through her, causing her stomach to churn in protest.

With a soft groan, Sarah rolled onto her side, keeping her eyes closed, and pulling the blanket up more tightly around her.

Then Sarah realized she was in a bed.

Sarah's eyes flew open, and she sat upright, panic surging through her.

Nausea and pain flooded through her more strongly now.

Hissing at the pain, Sarah placed her head in her hands, barely registering the sight of the Goblin King and a woman in a brown dress.

"Lay back down, my lady," the woman said, her voice coming closer as Sarah's vision became speckled with black spots. "You're not fit to move around yet."

"Where's Toby?" Sarah demanded, ignoring the pain to lock eyes with Jareth. "How did I get here?"

A strange look crossed the Goblin King's face as he turned towards the woman.

"Leave us," he ordered. "Lady Sarah and I have things to discuss."

The woman opened her mouth to protest, but was silenced by a single gesture, and swiftly left.

Slowly, Jareth began to approach Sarah.

"Where is my brother?" Sarah hissed at him, trying hard to make eye contact despite the bright light of the rising sun. "What happened?"

With a sigh, Jareth pulled up a seat at Sarah's bedside. When Sarah attempted to climb out of the bed to get away from him, he merely grabbed her wrist, looking at her with tired eyes.

"If you leave this bed, I will be forced to restrain you for your own safety," he told her calmly. "I will answer all your questions in due time."

If she hadn't been in so much pain, Sarah would have huffed, but as it was, it was difficult to keep her eyes open.

Once Sarah settled back into her bed, Jareth let out a small breath of relief.

"What is the last thing you remember?" the Goblin King asked, leaning back in his seat a bit.

Sarah eyed him warily. He had yet to remove his hand from her wrist. Why she wasn't protesting, she didn't totally know.

"Toby and I were walking through a forest," she said. "We were in the middle of moving somewhere that nobody knew us. We were talking to a water nymph. I think it was about midday."

"Is that everything?"

It took a second, but Sarah finally realized that the look on his face was concern.

"Yes, why? What happened? Where is Toby?"

"Toby is in the next room, resting," Jareth explained. "He's been by your side since the evening before last."

Sarah let out a sigh of relief. He was safe. That's what mattered.

"However…" Jareth began.

Sarah's head immediately snapped towards him, which she regretted instantly.

Jareth saw her face contort in pain, and regretted that he could do nothing to help ease it. For all his power, Jareth did not know enough about human physiology to help her.

Quite frankly, the healer didn't have enough experience with humans to be of much help. Before Sarah had awoken, they'd been discussing sending someone aboveground to get medical texts for her to go over.

"Sarah," the Goblin King began slowly, hoping that Sarah wouldn't react badly to what he was about to say. "You were attacked. A satyr didn't understand that–" Jareth's jaw tightened at the memory "–that you didn't want him. From what little Toby has told me, the satyr pushed him, and in trying to protect your brother, you–"

Jareth hesitated, placing his free hand over his eyes.

"I, what?" Sarah demanded.

"You wished him away," he said, dropping his hand.

Sarah stiffened, frozen for a second, staring at him in disbelief. When she found no dishonesty in his face, Sarah threw her legs over the side of the bed, pulling her wrist free from his grasp. Only now, as she tried to stand, did Sarah realize that she was only wearing a nightgown.

"How much time do I have?" she asked, using the side of the bed as a support.

"Sarah…" Jareth got to his feet, following her movements.

"I've beaten you once; I can do it again. I want my brother back. How much time?"

Jareth stepped in front of her and grabbed her by the shoulders.

"You need to sit back down," Jareth told her, trying to lead her back to her bed.

"How much time, Jareth?!"

"None," he said, his voice heavy. Whether it was with regret or resignation, even Jareth wasn't sure.

A brief silence hung between them.

"What do you mean, 'none'?!" Sarah demanded, practically screaming at him.

"You need to sit down," said Jareth, already tired. "You're not well–"

"No!" Sarah shouted, trying to shake herself free of his grasp. "You answer me right now, or so help me I'll– I'll–"

Sarah's mind floundered, trying to find something she could threaten him with.

As the gears turned desperately in Sarah's mind, Jareth watched her face grow despondent, and her struggles increased.

"If you allow me to explain," Jareth said slowly, drawing her attention back, "we may be able to come to an agreement."

Sarah gave him a suspicious look, but said nothing.

"Please, Sarah, sit down," said Jareth, indicating the small, plain bed beside her. "I would prefer you didn't push yourself while you are still unwell."

Crinkling her nose a little, Sarah did as she was told.

Jareth quickly joined her on the edge of the bed, far enough away to ensure her comfort, but close enough to catch her if she had any dizzy spells.

"I attempted to stall for as much time as I could," explained Jareth, carefully choosing each word so that Sarah would not try anything again. "I exploited as many loopholes as I could, and gave you twenty-six hours to regain consciousness and run the Labyrinth."

"How long was I asleep?" Sarah asked. Immediately, she kicked herself. What did it matter how much time she'd missed her chance by? Of all the stupid questions she could have asked, why did she ask that one?

"Thirty-six hours," Jareth said.

Sarah went completely still, her hands folded on her lap, cold reality setting in.

"So, what, now Toby becomes a goblin?" Sarah asked, her voice sounding as hopeless in her ears as it did in Jareth's.

"Not necessarily."

Sarah's eyes shot up to Jareth.

"You mean children _aren't_ turned into goblins?!" asked Sarah, a small spark coming back into her eyes.

"Not always," said Jareth. "It is not uncommon to turn children into goblins. It tends to help people scare their children into behaving in the Underground."

Sarah rolled her eyes at that, but quickly returned them to the Goblin King, waiting for further explanation.

"When a child is turned into a goblin," Jareth continued, "it is either because there is no place for them to go, or they are not safe to be released into the Underground for one reason or another. If possible, the children are given to homes and families that will take care of them."

"So, I could adopt Toby back from you?" Sarah asked, hopefully.

"No. Unfortunately, a wisher can only get a child back from the Labyrinth if they defeat it within twenty-six hours of the wish."

"Then what kind of agreement are we supposed to come to?!" she exclaimed loudly. Shortly after, Sarah had to cover her eyes due to the pain and nausea that flooded through her again.

Jareth waited for Sarah to recover before he continued.

"It is not unheard of for a Goblin King adopting a wished-away child," Jareth explained. He was hesitant, practically holding his breath as he watched her soak in this information. "If I adopted Toby, he would essentially become my heir unless he declined the throne or I had a child of my own. Until the age of seventeen, he would be bound to the Labyrinth, unable to leave unless escorted by myself."

"And what am I supposed to do?" Sarah asked, honestly at a loss. She was having trouble thinking straight, a large part of it being the pounding in her skull.

"Live here," Jareth suggested, his face unreadable. "In my castle as my personal guest. You may stay for as long as you like, have access to anything you should so desire, and all you would have to do is follow a few simple rules."

Jareth watched as the gears began to turn in Sarah's head again. She was weighing her options.

Would Toby be safe? Somehow, Sarah trusted that he would be, given the fact that the Labyrinth's main purpose was to take unwanted children and give them a safe place. At minimum, this agreement would keep them together. Sarah wouldn't be separated from Toby, and they wouldn't have any problems with money or clothes ever again.

Would _she _be safe? Jareth was practically an enigma. He was intimidating, and could be cruel when he wanted to be. She didn't trust him any further than she could throw him, and he'd never given her a reason to.

But he didn't really give her much of a choice, either.

"What are the rules?" Sarah asked quietly, a bit frightened of his answer.

"The only one you need to be concerned with right now, is this; don't wander the Labyrinth at night."

Sarah hesitated.

"How long do I have to think about it?"

Jareth glanced at the nearest clock.

"Less than three hours."

A strangled and frustrated noise came out of Sarah's throat.

What was she going to do?

"Sarah!"

Jareth and Sarah's heads immediately turned towards the sound of her name, as Toby came running through the room.

Without thinking, Sarah immediately dropped from the bed to her knees to embrace her little brother.

"I was scared you weren't going to wake up again," Toby cried quietly in her shoulder.

"I'm okay, Toby," she told him softly, holding him tighter. "I promise. I'm so sorry I wished you away again. I didn't–"

"I know," he said.

They stayed like that for a few moments, just holding each other in silence while the Goblin King watched on.

Finally, Sarah pulled away and wiped a little hair out of her brother's eyes. It was getting long, and soon he would need to have it cut again.

Toby offered a watery smile, and Sarah felt a small pang in her chest.

Turning to the Goblin King from her position on the ground, Sarah knew what she had to do.

"If I agree," she began slowly, "Toby will get everything he needs, no matter what? He'll be completely safe?"

"Of course," said Jareth. "As will you."

"Then we have a deal," said Sarah.

[12]

* * *

***flips giant switch* Whew, okay, so that's done! Sarah has a concussion, apparently medicine for humans is not very advanced in the Underground so she'll have to recover from a concussion the old fashioned way, and Toby is now Jareth's adopted son.**

**Hopefully, you all liked this chapter. Again, sorry about how... dark things got in the last chapter. Sarah shouldn't be put in harms way like that again.**

**Have a good morning, day, or night! See you guys later!**

**** EDIT: Kaytori was kind enough to point out a plot hole and hopefully what little I did in this chapter will resolve the plot hole, along with some explanations I'm setting up in the next chapter! Sorry to those of you who got the update and then didn't get to read the chapter! **


	14. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: Let's see, carry the one, drop the three, and... still don't own anything Labyrinth related! Neat!**

**Thanks to tmwillson3 who is so patient and kind. Go check her out. She's worth the read.**

* * *

Jareth sat in the middle of a horde of goblins and chickens, a scowl marring his features.

His head healer stood in front of him, having just finished her report on Sarah's condition.

"If I'm understanding you correctly," said the Goblin King, one gloved finger tapping on the arm of his throne, "we just have to wait for her to recover?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," the healer said. "According the Aboveground medical books, it is the only thing we can do."

Jareth let out an irritated noise and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Isn't there a healer who can hurry things up?"

"I believe we covered this when the Lady was unconscious, Sire," the healer said, not even batting an eye at the Goblin King's harsh gaze, "but the Goblin Kingdom has not needed a healer specialized in human anatomy in decades. The healers we do have only have the knowledge to treat citizens of this kingdom."

"Sarah and Toby _are_ citizens of my kingdom," Jareth retorted.

"My apologies," the healer stated calmly, bowing slightly. "You know what I meant."

"And remind me why we can't use magic to heal her?" he asked, glaring at the golem in front of him.

"Because magic reacts differently to humans," she said. "As a result, without an expert, it is hard to know if I would make things worse or better."

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Jareth leaned back into his throne, throwing a leg over the arm of it.

This whole thing felt ridiculous.

But she was right.

The Goblin Kingdom had not needed a healer for humans in decades, when the last human that lived in his kingdom had died. Even then, most humans that came to the Goblin Kingdom were turned into goblins. The –_maybe_– twenty humans that had arrived in the past hundred years were no exception.

His healers, while they were well-trained, were only equipped with the knowledge to treat his subjects as they were.

"How long until we can have a healer for humans in the Labyrinth?" he asked.

"Depending on their business and willingness to come," she began, "up to three weeks. If we're lucky, they could arrive within days. After they arrive, with your permission, I can copy their knowledge so I may be able to treat the Williams siblings from then on."

"How long until Sarah will be back to full health?" Jareth asked.

"A week," she answered. "Possibly two."

"You're dismissed, then."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," the healer said. The woman bowed quickly before exiting the room, weaving between goblins with an expertise that only came from practice.

As soon as she was out the door, Jareth let his head fall back. This whole experience was infuriating. It should have been joyous to have Sarah return, but as with any of his plans surrounding her, they never went right.

For now, Jareth would give Sarah some space. He needed to make preparations for them, as it was. They both needed proper rooms and a new wardrobe. Toby required a tutor, and Sarah likely needed an etiquette instructor. If all went well, he could get everything ready by the time the healer said Sarah could leave the infirmary.

[13]

Despite their king's brooding, the goblins were celebrating the return of their Champion. Even if Sarah wasn't returning as their queen, they figured that she soon would be, and drank to her recovery.

[13]

* * *

**Wow, okay, first update in quite some time. I'm sorry about that. Stuff... was happening, and a lot of it. Things are settling down, I have a new job with a consistent schedule now, and the pay is a lot better. I've got big plans for the next part of the story. And as I'm writing the next chapter, I think I might have small scene that will make our little fangirl hearts flutter.**

**Also, fair thing to note, I think this chapter fixes the whole issue with healer and blah blah. I know I messed up big with that without thinking, but with any luck, that won't happen again.**

**Well, it was great seeing you guys, sorry about the short update, hope to have a longer one when I come back, and you all have a good one!**


	15. Chapter 14

**At last! The new chapter! Sorry this took so long. I really just write in spurts and man can that take a while sometime. I'm trying to buckle down and force the chapters out a little bit more, so I have the next three chapters ready, I just need to finish the editing and ready for to post.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the source material or anything in it.**

**And as always, thanks to tmwillson3, who, as always, works hard to make sure each chapter is the best it can be. Shower her with love.**

* * *

It had only been day two since Sarah had awoken in the Goblin Kingdom, and today she was being moved out of the infirmary into a bedroom that she would be staying in for an indefinite amount of time. Sarah wasn't being allowed to walk there, either.

As it was, Sarah was going stir crazy. She had spent the last two years standing, walking, and working near constantly. The fact that she was now on bed rest was like an unwanted vacation.

The head healer, a woman named Yara, was arranging for Sarah's transportation in the form of a troll.

Finally seeing one up close, the human girl could confirm that they were almost exactly how Keagan had described; green skin, bright as grass in the sun, big black eyes, and large, drooping, elephant-like ears.

When Sarah had been told the castle librarian was carrying her, a troll was not what she had had in mind. She had expected a small bookish elf or something of the like. Instead this troll had come lumbering through the door, a pair of reading glasses on his nose.

From what Sarah understood, this troll was the castle's only librarian, as he was the only one (aside from the Goblin King) who could effectively scare the goblins away. He was also one of the few creatures in the castle strong enough to carry her.

"Do you understand my instructions?" Yara asked the troll.

"Of course I do," he responded, patiently. "I am to carry the Champion to her new chambers and place her in the bed. Any fool could do this."

"Well then hurry up," said Yara. "The king said he would be there five minutes from now. We do not want to keep him waiting."

The troll rolled his eyes, but approached Sarah.

"Hello," Sarah said from her place on the bed. She offered a small smile to him in the hopes that she wouldn't appear as nervous as she was. "I'm Sarah. It's nice to meet you."

"It is an honor to meet _you,_ Lady Sarah," the troll said, bowing to her. "I am Callox, the castle's librarian."

"So I heard," Sarah said. "I have a feeling we'll being seeing a lot of each other from now on."

"You enjoy books, then," Callox said, less of a question than it was a statement.

"Of course," she said. "I was considered bookish when I lived Aboveground."

The troll chuckled, a deep, hearty sound from deep in his chest.

"Then I look forward to seeing you around," he said. "Never feel afraid to ask my help. It will be a nice change of pace to have someone not trying to eat or burn the books for fun."

Sarah couldn't help but giggle. Of course the goblins were trouble.

Then Yara cleared her throat behind them.

"Yes, yes, I'll hurry up," Callox snapped back at the healer, before returning his attention to Sarah. "You'll have to excuse the intrusion of your space, my lady. I'm sure you understand."

Sarah nodded, scooting the edge of the bed to make it easier for him to pick her up.

Carefully, Callox put a large hand under her knees and another behind her back. Sarah wrapped her arm around his neck for support.

Just as Callox lifted Sarah off of the bed, the door to the infirmary swung open, and two familiar faces walked in.

"Sarah! Sarah!" Toby shouted, bolting in without really seeing the room. "Our rooms are awesome and huge and–"

The words stuck in the boy's throat as he saw the troll.

For a few seconds Toby just stared, eyes wide, mouth slightly agape. Then he started talking excitedly.

"Are you a troll? You're a troll, aren't you! This is so cool! I've never met a troll before! What's your name? Are you a guard? What do you do–"

Jareth placed a firm hand on Toby's shoulder, effectively silencing him for the moment.

"You may ask him any question you like later," Jareth said, appearing calm.

Sarah felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She didn't know why, but had the feeling that the Goblin King was unhappy with what he saw.

Toby reluctantly closed his mouth and went to sit in an empty chair while Jareth approached the troll.

"I will carry her," Jareth said, holding out his arms expectantly. "You may resume your duties in the library, Callox."

The troll nodded and began to shift his hold to hand Sarah off.

"Wait, don't I get a say in this?" Sarah asked a little too loudly, causing everyone to freeze momentarily. She cringed internally at the alarm that she'd accidentally betrayed in her voice.

The Goblin King's face shifted slightly, but was still virtually unreadable. However, the healer began mumbling in another language under her breath as she rubbed her forehead with one hand.

"Callox protects my library from the goblins," Jareth stated plainly, stepping close enough that Sarah was almost sandwiched between the two men now. "He has more important things to do than carry you around."

"You're the king," said Sarah. "Don't _you_ have better things to do?"

The room went so quiet, Sarah almost swore she heard a pin drop.

The Goblin King raised an eyebrow to her.

"Sarah," he said in a low, warning tone. "You need to pick your battles. If you'd like, we can have a longer conversation about this later, but I _will_ be carrying you to your new room."

Before Sarah could protest further, Jareth had his arms around her and Callox's hands were gone. Instinctively, Sarah put her arms around Jareth's neck to ward off the feeling of falling, eliciting a small smirk from the man in question.

"You are dismissed, Callox," Jareth said, his face returning to a mask.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," the troll said quickly, bowing.

Almost as quickly as he'd done that, Callox had left the room, and Toby was at the door watching him walk away with blatant fascination.

"Why did you do that?" Sarah demanded. "I can walk. I don't need someone to carry me."

Jareth turned his head to look her dead in the eyes, making her realize just how close they were.

His mismatched eyes bore into hers for a few seconds. Sarah felt like he was trying to search her soul for something.

"Yara," Jareth said suddenly, causing the healer to jump. "Did you not inform your patient that she was not to walk until you were certain she was healthy?"

"Of course I did, Your Majesty," the healer quickly said. "She is as stubborn as you when it comes to taking instructions."

Sarah saw the Goblin King's eyes narrow towards the healer, but he said nothing.

"We've wasted enough time here," Jareth said, turning them towards the door. "Come, Toby. Time to show your sister her new rooms."

[14]

As Jareth carried Sarah in his arms through the halls of his castle, he couldn't help but appreciate how nice it was to have Sarah so close. To be able to hold her when she was conscious. But it felt like a needle in his gut to have Sarah so uncomfortable in his arms when she seemed so relaxed in his librarian's.

When he had seen Sarah in the troll's arms, possessiveness had grown in his chest, and Jareth couldn't help but demand that he carry her.

The last time he'd had the chance to hold her, he'd been too concerned about her health to notice how slight she was, or the warmth that her body seemed to radiate. It was a pleasant sensation having her so close. If it wasn't for the fact that Sarah was so quick to protest, Jareth might have enjoyed this opportunity more.

Jareth was just disappointed that Sarah seemed so unnerved.

"Is there something wrong, Precious?" he asked, feigning innocence.

"I still cannot believe that you don't have wheelchairs in the Underground," Sarah stated, refusing to make eye contact. Instead, she seemed intent on memorizing the passageway before them. "And couldn't you just, you know, magic me to my room?"

Jareth chuckled.

"Of course I _could_," he said, not bothering to hide his smile, "but what would be the fun in that?"

Sarah turned to glare at him, then quickly realized her mistake and resumed looking anywhere but him, causing Jareth to feel oddly slighted. He was used to women watching his every move, yet Sarah always seemed to do exactly the opposite of what he was accustomed to.

"Come now, Precious," Jareth said, openly watching her face. "Surely it isn't so bad."

Behind them, Toby began humming without thinking, too busy running from one to another, checking every window, wall, and tapestry he could touch.

"How much longer are you going to carry me?" Sarah asked. "I can't possibly live _that_ far away from the infirmary."

"You don't," Jareth said, lowering his voice slightly. "I took the long route."

"What? Why?"

When Sarah's gaze met his wolfish grin, she couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"You just love making me uncomfortable, don't you?"

"There is that," Jareth said, "but I'm also entertaining Toby. Your brother seems convinced that there are secret passageways hidden throughout the castle. It seems you've grown to be quite the story teller."

Sarah said nothing, opting instead to look behind them to see Toby.

Whether she realized it or not, the guilt was evident on her face when she looked at the boy.

As Jareth stopped at a fork in the halls, waiting for Toby to catch up, he began hatching schemes, things he could arrange to make Sarah feel more at home here. If he wanted Sarah to stay, he needed to give her a reason.

As soon as Toby had caught up, Jareth began down the final hallway.

"Are there secret passageways in this castle?" Sarah asked Jareth quietly as Toby ran ahead of them.

"There used to be," Jareth explained. "I was forced to seal them up years ago."

"Why?"

"The goblins found them."

Sarah waited expectantly for an explanation for a few moments until Jareth stopped in front of a door.

Toby stood in front of the door practically jumping. He was resisting saying anything as Jareth had told him it was to be a surprise for Sarah, but the boy could barely contain himself.

"Toby, if you would do the honors," said Jareth, indicating the large double doors with his head.

The moment the doors opened, Sarah's eyes became like saucers. The rooms that Jareth had chosen for her and her brother were some of the finest that he had to offer, and with some slight modifications, they were almost on par with his own.

"It's beautiful," said Sarah, nearly breathless.

Jareth couldn't help but smirk. Of course it was. He had personally modified it with Sarah in mind. And she had yet to see the wardrobe he had arranged for her.

As Jareth walked towards the bed, he began to speak.

"The door next to your bed leads to Toby's bedroom," said Jareth. "The doors on the other side lead to the bathroom and the closet respectively. Should you need help changing clothes or need to get up for any reason, I've arranged for servants to be on hand until the healer says you're back to full health."

Sarah rolled her eyes as she was placed in the bed but kept quiet for the moment.

"Your meals will be brought to you, along with anything else you should desire," the fae continued as she tucked herself in and began arranging pillows. With a wave of his hand, Jareth summoned a crystal and offered it to her. "Should you need anything, just tell the crystal, and someone will bring it to you."

Cautiously, as though the crystal was about to turn into a snake, Sarah took it from him, meeting his gaze cautiously.

"Thank you," she said. "This was more than I could have expected."

"Of course," said Jareth graciously. Then he turned to Toby, who was busy pulling off his shoes so he could climb on the bed with Sarah, a book in hand. "Toby, your nanny will be by in an hour to take you to your lessons."

And with that, Jareth turned to leave.

Just as Jareth was about to close the door, a final thought crossed his mind.

"Oh yes, and Sarah," he called, causing the young beauty's head to snap up. He summoned a crystal and casually tossed it across the room. It disappeared into the bed as soon as it touched the duvet. "That spell will keep you from leaving the bed without help."

An indignant look quickly flashed across Sarah's features, but Jareth closed the door firmly behind him, effectively silencing all arguments.

However, once the door was closed, Jareth paused and took a heavy breath. This was only the beginning. In a week, Sarah would be healthy enough to walk again.

Jareth suspected that was when the real trouble would begin.

[14]

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**And here we are at the end again.**

**So... Sarah's got her own room! I don't know. I don't know what to say here. Hi? Sorry it's been a while since I posted a chapter, and welcome to the person who started following this story this morning completely coincidentally. Sorry, honey, you're going to have wait a little while for the next chapter.**

**Speaking of which.**

**Next Chapter Estimated Post Date: Friday, May 27, 2016**

**See you then and have a lovely morning/afternoon/day/night.**


	16. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I have never owned Labyrinth. Nor will I probably ever.**

**Thanks to my Beta, tmwillson3, who is amazing and always so great to work with. Check her out, she's pretty awesome.**

* * *

Sarah laid in bed, dressed in a simple nightgown, the moonlight shining in through the glass windows that practically lined the walls that lead out to the balcony. Because of Jareth's stupid spell, she hadn't had the chance to go see the view for herself, but she'd managed to catch a few glimpses when she stretched.

The moon was what Sarah liked to call a Cheshire moon, because it was shaped like the Cheshire Cat's grin.

The thin white curtains caught the light like ghosts. Sarah kept expecting them to move in a breeze that wasn't there, but they didn't.

Rolling over, Sarah inspected her new room for the millionth time.

Everything was made with rich, dark wood.

There was a writing desk in a small alcove in the corner with bookshelves taller than she was surrounding them. A fireplace across from the bed, made with orange stones that stood out from the gray stones of the walls; in front of the fireplace was a loveseat and two large, comfy chairs, all upholstered with a fabric that would alternate between a rich, dark red, to a bright, sunset orange, and a brown rug.

Then, of course, there was the bed.

It was a large canopy bed, covered in reds and oranges, just like the lounge chairs, with thick, heavy curtains that could be pulled around it.

Sarah had had to request that the nervous, yet insistent, nymph not pull the curtains around her bed tonight. She wanted to enjoy the moonlight, plus the weather was warm, almost balmy. After all, it was the middle of spring.

Sarah was just grateful that the blankets were stuck to the bed like she was because of Jareth's stupid spell.

Still, it was impeccable how the designer for this room had known her favorite colors.

Not to mention how the bed was absolutely perfect. It was so comfortable; Sarah almost felt like she was lying on clouds and could just float out the window.

And yet, she couldn't sleep.

Too much had happened.

Too much was happening.

It was a feeling in her bones that there was something not right about tonight, but she couldn't tell what. Like something was vibrating inside her body.

"Go to sleep, Sarah," She chastised herself. "You'll drive yourself crazy like this."

Closing her eyes, Sarah started taking deep, steadying breaths. Four seconds inhaling through her nose, hold for two seconds, exhale for eight. Again. Again.

Sarah did this until she began to feel her body wind down, like it was releasing the weight of being awake.

Just as she felt her mind beginning to settle, Sarah heard the soft sound of a door opening, her eyes flew open, and she jolted into a sitting position.

[15]

Jareth was exhausted. All he wanted to do was check in on Sarah to make sure she was sleeping soundly, then go to bed.

Yet, he didn't dare look in on Sarah, and he _couldn't_ go to bed. Not with a Runner loose in his Kingdom.

This woman, with auburn hair and dark blue eyes, had only begun the challenge an hour ago, and he couldn't sleep until she was out of his Kingdom, not even if he'd wanted to.

It was just another reason why he regretted ever giving that stupid challenge.

Between a Champion who refused to claim her prize, women who were convinced that they could just seduce him into dropping the requirement of winning so he could be with them, or nights like this, Jareth couldn't believe how foolhardy he'd been.

Glancing into the crystal he'd summoned to keep an eye on the Runner, Jareth briefly registered that he'd seen her before. That probably meant she'd already tried this a few times, which explained why she was carefully searching the first wall for an opening.

Unable to hold it back, Jareth yawned.

Because Jareth was king of the Labyrinth, he was afforded certain privileges that could also be considered double-edged blades. The most notable one was that, so long as an intruder was in the Labyrinth, Jareth could sense them, like there was a harp string tied between the Labyrinth and his chest. And every step this runner took was like a musician plucking it over and over again.

When he'd first taken the throne, Jareth had been disturbed by the sensation, likening it to more of a feeling of unease in the air, but experience only made it into an annoying strumming.

And this feeling would not go away until she was gone.

He wouldn't be able to sleep tonight because of it.

On a whim, Jareth decided to peak into Toby's dreams. Perhaps watching the innocence of a child's subconscious would entertain him long enough that the woman would merely give up.

Instead, Jareth saw Toby climbing out of his bed, tears on his cheeks. Before Jareth could worry too much, Toby headed straight for the door to Sarah's room.

[15]

"Sarah," a soft voice sniffled from the other side of the door. "Can I come in?"

"Of course, Toby." said Sarah, quickly making room on the bed for him to scoot on. "What's wrong?"

Toby padded into the room on bare feet, dressed in a pair of green, cotton pajama's, before carefully pulling himself onto the bed and throwing himself into Sarah's arms.

"I had a bad dream," he said, his voice muffled in her shoulder.

"What happened?" she asked, beginning to slowly rock him.

A small sob escaped him.

Pangs of guilt rang through her.

He'd been through so much, nearly lost every member of his family, all because of her.

"Y-you were being at-tacked," Toby managed to hiccup out. "These women w-w-were chasing you. You fell. And- and-"

Toby started sobbing, heaving uncontrollably.

Almost immediately, Sarah began to hum.

It was a tune she'd heard once, though she didn't think anything about where it had come from. She hummed it until Toby's breathing slowed, and she was able to lay him down next to her without waking him.

Pulling up the blanket around them, Sarah watched the sleeping boy's face, the feeling of unease rising in her again, causing her to shiver despite the warmth.

Instinctively, Sarah knew it was going to be a long night, even if she ever managed to get to sleep.

[15]

Jareth sat there, watching the crystal with rapt attention as Sarah began humming. He knew that song. He'd written it for _her_.

He was awestruck she even remembered it, especially since the peach had meddled with her memories.

The Goblin King found that he couldn't remove his eyes from her. Through the ten minutes of humming that it took to put her brother to sleep, the slow careful movements she made as she laid him down on the bed, even the slight shiver she gave before she laid down next to the boy.

He watched her slowly, but surely, drift into a restless slumber.

If Jareth hadn't had his duties to perform, he had little doubt he would have transported himself over to her bedroom and taken her into his arms.

Jareth saw this as a potential step forward. If she remembered the song, she would likely remember their dance, and from there, it would be easier to convince her of his affections and that he wanted the best for her.

A shriek tore Jareth attention back to the crystal that kept watch over the runner. She'd fallen into an oubliette.

With a heavy sigh and a longing glance, Jareth dispelled the crystal that spied the siblings through it.

With the wave of his hand, Jareth summoned a crystal, clouded and containing a dream. Softly, he blew on it, and the crystal flew out his window.

"Sweet dreams, Precious," he said softly.

[15]

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**Super short chapter. Not the shortest I've ever written, but it's short enough.**

**Dang, I'm tired. I'm considering taking a vacation from work. Maybe spend some extra time writing.**

**Also, don't ever have a drink called a Lava Lamp unless you have a designated driver or some safe way to get home. Those things are _strong_.**

**Hope you all are doing well, have a wonderful day or night wherever you are, whenever you're reading this, and I'll see you all soon.**

**Next Estimated Post Date: June 17, 2016.**


	17. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: All rights to things involving the movie and anything in it, actors and their respective likenesses, belong to whoever owns them. I don't know, I'm just writing fan fiction.**

**Thanks as always to my BETA tmwillson3, who is always so great. Send her love!**

* * *

Yara, another healer, and one of the three circulating women Jareth had assigned as her maids, watched Sarah closely as she lowered her feet onto the surprisingly warm floor. It was the first time in two weeks Sarah was going to be allowed to walk on her own, and she was more than grateful, awkward staring aside.

Sarah had thought that, after that first week in the infirmary, she could at least get away with sneaking around on her feet once she was in her room, but no, instead, Jareth had cast that stupid spell, forcing her to stay bedridden that much longer.

As she put weight on her feet, Sarah felt a sense of relief. After being on bed rest for nearly two weeks, not being allowed to do anything on her own – including use the bathroom – had been a nightmare.

Almost as soon as Sarah was standing on her own feet by her own power, she stepped away from the bed, ignoring the healers' and the maid's protests.

The curiosity and the slight glimpses had been driving her crazy for the entirety of the time that she had been stuck in this room. Reading books all day and talking with women she barely knew was entertaining and all, but it wasn't exactly the most interesting thing in the world to do, and it could get tiring.

Finally, Sarah stepped past the glass doors and onto the balcony. Finally, she could see her view of the Labyrinth.

The moment she stepped up to the railing, Sarah took a slow, deliberate, deep breath.

The fresh air was a relief, but the view was even more so.

Beneath her stood the Goblin City. The buildings were small, three stories at maximum, and tightly compacted together, but they were haphazard. From what little she could see, the streets were more like a maze than the actual Labyrinth.

However, what drew Sarah's eye was the market going on below.

The brightly covered stalls lined a particularly wide street, each person trying to sell their various wares or haggling over prices of things they wanted. Even from a good six stories above the market, Sarah could see a junk lady haggling over something large and likely unnecessary.

"My lady, you should come back in," said the nervous maid. "It would be improper if someone else saw you in such a state of undress."

Sarah sighed and turned to look at the woman.

She was about half a foot shorter than Sarah, with curly, fluffy, brown hair. Her nose was slightly upturned and her ears, like those of a lamb, hung out from under her hair. She wore the required uniform of a castle maid, which primarily consisted of a knee length dress with enough petticoats to make the skirt stand out two inches off her legs. Below the knee, the woman's legs were covered in fur until they met her hooves.

The maid's name was Mimi, and she was what was known as a caorach.

When Sarah had first seen her, she'd wrongly assumed she was a satyr, just like the one that had attacked her in the forest. Instead, she'd learned that satyrs were closer to goats, and caorach were sheep.

"Does it really matter that much?" Sarah asked, already a bit nonplussed. "I'm covered; isn't that enough?"

"Yes, my lady," said Mimi. "I mean, no, my lady. I mean–"

"What the girl means to say," said Yara, stepping past the fumbling maid, a robe in her hands, "is that yes, it matters, and no, it's not enough."

With a reluctant groan, Sarah took the robe from Yara and began shrugging it on.

"You really shouldn't be pushing yourself," said Yara, watching Sarah carefully. "You could still be unwell, and we wouldn't know about it."

"I'm fine," said Sarah. She turned back to the view. "Besides, you _know_ how antsy I've been. I need to move."

"Then perhaps a small walk would do you good," Yara agreed, "but you shouldn't try to push yourself too quickly. If you become ill again, the king will likely have my clay."

A brief laugh left Sarah's throat. Of course the golem would say that.

"I promise, I won't push myself, okay?" said Sarah, glancing back at the healer.

Although she appeared unconvinced, Yara nodded.

"I shall arrange for an escort for you, then," the healer said, quickly turning on her heels.

"I'm a grown woman," Sarah quickly protested, following the healer back into the bedroom. "I can take care of myself."

"I don't doubt that you can," said Yara, stopping just in front of the door, "but I will say it again. The king would not be pleased if I allowed you to walk about the kingdom without assurance that, should you become ill again, you were not alone."

Sarah resisted the urge to groan and throw a tantrum like a child. All she wanted was to get out of this room. It felt like the Goblin King was being overprotective of her, and, as a result, everyone else was too.

"Fine," said Sarah, rubbing her temples with one hand. "Whatever you need to do."

"Then I shall return with a guard," said Yara, indicating for her companion to follow her out. "Change your clothes while I am gone. We shall return shortly."

Without another word, Yara was out the door, with her underling in tow, leaving Sarah alone with Mimi.

[16]

Sarah's walk-in closet turned out to be much larger than she had anticipated. It was practically a room on its own. There were two racks of dresses sitting in the middle of the room while the walls were lined with dressers, jewelry boxes, and shoe racks, all of which were filled and organized carefully.

If Sarah's jaw could have hit the floor, it would have.

With Mimi's help, Sarah had spent the better part of twenty minutes just rifling through the dresses and learning what was appropriate for what occasions. There were several, full-length ball gowns, the like of which Sarah hadn't seen since a renaissance fair she'd gone to just after high school.

Sarah had been horribly tempted to try them on for fun, but she wanted to go for a walk more, and forced herself to decide on a dress for the walk, determined to come back to those ball gowns later.

[16]

Dressed in a royal green gown that went down to her ankles and a pair of simple boots, Sarah walked out of the castle.

Sarah had managed to sneak Toby out of his lessons and bring him with her. When she'd told him that they were going to a market, Toby couldn't help but get excited. For two years, going to a market together was the highlight of most weeks.

Even with the guard following a few feet behind them, Sarah couldn't help but share the boy's enthusiasm.

Walking through the streets, Sarah couldn't help but laugh at the memories of the last time she'd been here and how there were still battle scars. As they passed them, Sarah pointed out a few to Toby and told him how they got there.

The closer they got to the market, the more people they passed, and the more people began to bow their heads to them.

Whispers of "the Champion" and "the Prince" started following them, although Toby was too distracted by all the different races to notice.

It was truly a stark difference between the City of the Elves and Goblin City. The City of the Elves was filled primarily with elves, and to a lesser degree, fae and humans. Yet here, Sarah lost track of how many different races she saw.

Elves, dwarves, nymphs, trolls, a few centaurs, and, of course, goblins, were all she could name off the top of her head.

When they finally arrived at the market, Toby broke away from her and began running from stall to stall in excitement, checking all of their wares and goods before moving on.

"Toby!" Sarah called after him, trying to follow him at a brisk pace. Any faster and Sarah suspected the guard would have stopped her. "Don't wander off!"

"But Sarah!" Toby whined.

"Remember the rule?" she said, sternly taking his hand again. "You have to stay close."

"I know," Toby grumbled. "I'm sorry."

"Just don't do it again," Sarah chided. "Now, where do you want to go?"

Toby looked around carefully, weighing his options carefully. In the Middle City Market, Sarah had been forced to teach Toby only to approach the stalls that interested him. He knew to choose carefully. Finally, he pointed to a stall piled high with colorful fabrics.

When they approached the stall, the bored-looking dwarf immediately perked up and smiled.

"Good morning!" he said, rubbing his hands together in excitement. "What can I do for the two most interesting people in the kingdom today?"

Sarah cracked a bemused smile at the salesman.

"We're just browsing today," she said kindly. "Don't pay us any mind."

"Well, by all means, take your time," he said, clearly a little disappointed. "If you see anything you like, recommend it to the castle seamstress. I'll appreciate any business I can get."

Sarah suppressed a little eye roll. He was a salesman. She understood that all too well.

After perusing some of his more interesting fabrics, Toby's eyes wandered off to a stall filled with exotic fruits, where the siblings were offered free samples. Sarah declined, not wanting to take anything without paying.

Although Sarah didn't dare voice this, she felt bad about all the money and time that must've been spent on her already. The dresses in her closet hadn't just appeared out of nowhere, and Sarah very much suspected that the furnishings in her room had either been purchased or redone just for her.

She'd also had a chance to see Toby's bedroom. It was similar to her own, though less bare as it was filled with toys and additional activities for the boy. Sarah couldn't imagine the kind of money Jareth had spent on their account.

Almost every stall they went to, no matter the wares, offered the siblings a sample of their wares, whether it was food or various valuables. Sarah politely declined every single one of them.

If she could help it, Sarah would ensure that the least amount of money was spent on her as possible. She didn't want to be anymore in debt to the Goblin King than she already was.

[16]

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**Hey guys, thanks for reading.**

**BTW, I did some math over the past couple of weeks and I realized something. Sarah spent maybe a week after the events with the Elf King Daeron in the city before her dream with Jareth and promptly taking off into the woods. Then she spend four days in the forest, heading towards the Troll Kingdom. Then she spent two weeks in the Goblin Kingdom, one week on bedrest in the infirmary, and one week on bedrest in her new room. It's been nearly a month since the night Sarah was... reluctantly reunited with Jareth.**

**Well, that's about all I wanted to say. Thanks again for reading, and you have a wonderful time wherever you are. See you all next chapter! :D**

**Estimated Post Date of Chapter 17: July 8, 2016**

P.S. An astute guest asked about how Sarah's been using the bathroom if she hasn't been physically able to leave the bed, and I'd just like to say... I don't want to think about it, but she's probably been reluctantly using a bedpan, and after this chapter, she is unbelievably relieved to escape that bed. Thanks so much for your feedback. If you guys ever have questions for me about the fics, then please, message me. I love you guys and would love to hear from you. I'm always willing to talk about this story and answer questions. Unless it might be spoiler related. Then I make no promises.


	18. Chapter 17

**I don't own Labyrinth or anything associated with the Jim Henson company.**

**Thanks, as always, to my beta tmwillson3. She's always a great help.**

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Jareth groaned into his hands, ignoring one of his advisors blathering on about imports and exports. The king knew very well that their exports were thriving. He knew every salesman that took their goods into other countries by name. He didn't need to be told every name again, simply because his advisor didn't understand this.

He was on edge as it was already because he finally had Sarah back in his kingdom, and he hadn't been able to lay eyes on her in person since he had carried her to her room. His relentless advisors had insistently worked him round the clock on anything from minor grievances of his people (such as a dispute between a chicken and a goblin) to double-checking tax revenues.

"Next," the advisor continued. "Rhokal, a spirits salesman, has put in a request for more peach wine, as he has moved all his product–"

"Provide him with a third of the most recent product and be done with it, then," Jareth said, standing from his desk and stalking around it to stare the gnome down. "Send a three guard escort with Numuta to gather mushrooms in the Fiery Forest. And remind her she is only allowed three baskets worth. Give Thuris a guide to take him to the Phoenix Grove. And let Mogwhip know that he is not allowed to sell anything on behalf of the Goblin Kingdom anymore after his latest incident. Now is that all?"

The gnome looked up at his king with wide eyes, and nodded slowly.

"Then you are dismissed."

As fast as the gnome could, he gathered up the papers he brought with him and bolted for the door.

Once the door was shut, Jareth let out a sigh. He needed a break, and today was the day Sarah was going to be allowed to be up and about again. Jareth didn't know what kind of trouble she might get herself into, but he wanted to check on her. In person.

Just as Jareth was readying himself to transport to Sarah's door, there were three soft knocks on his door.

Suppressing a groan of irritation, Jareth snapped at the door, "What is it now?"

"It is about the Champion, your Majesty," said the voice of the _spiorad beaga._ "May I enter?"

Jareth suppressed a growl. Whenever that child showed up, it meant trouble.

"Enter."

Carefully, the door opened, and the small form slipped in.

"I really cannot understand why you keep me locked away from this room," it said, casually strolling past the king to sit in a soft chair in front of the desk. "It's very cozy. It is a shame to keep it all to yourself."

"What did you have to say about Sarah?"

The child's pale brown eyes rose to meet that of its king's.

"She has taken your new heir on a field trip to the Goblin Market," it said calmly. "Thus far she has carefully refused everything offered to her. It appears she knows how to handle herself better than I thought."

Jareth said nothing, merely glaring at the child. Whatever it was up to, Jareth was not going to play along.

The child sighed, and leaned back further into the seat.

"My point, your Majesty," _spiorad beaga_ continued, "is that she has not returned as your bride, but she is proving herself more than qualified to be queen. Now would be the ideal time to make her such. Even the goblins have accepted her as the queen, even if she isn't."

"As much as I would like to make her my queen," Jareth ground out, "if I force her to marry me, she will never love me."

"But until you have a queen, the runners for your hand will never cease. I am affected by their presence as much as you are. This must end."

Jareth grabbed the chair and turned it so that the child was staring him in the eyes.

"Why have you really come here?"

The child watched Jareth's face carefully. There was no fear or intimidation in their eyes. All Jareth could see was the child calculating what it was to say next.

"You have been distracted since her return," the child paused. "Allow me to correct myself. You have been more distracted than usual. I know you are capable of running this kingdom, even distracted, but you need to remove Sarah from your thoughts while you work."

"And how do you propose I do that?" the Goblin King asked, clear irritation in his voice.

"Perhaps," the child said slowly, "you could begin making rules to benefit your relationship with the girl. You have only established one of many possible. If you refuse to make her marry you, very well, but you can require her to have dinner with you and your heir every evening. Perhaps have her take etiquette lessons and hire a tutor so she can learn about the politics of the Underground."

Jareth paused at the thought. He had already intended to hire tutors for Sarah once he felt she was ready, but _spiorad beaga_ was right.

"Any other suggestions?" asked Jareth, casting the child a cautious gaze.

"I cannot solve all of your problems, you Majesty," the child said, climbing out of the chair. "Now, I must go. It seems some goblins have gotten stuck in a very small oubliette."

"I haven't excused you yet," Jareth hissed.

The child laughed.

"No, you have not," they said. "But you have more important things to worry about. Like picking up your lady-love from the market before she gets herself into trouble."

And with that _spiorad beaga_ walked into a wall and disappeared.

Within moments, Jareth summoned a crystal to watch Sarah.

She was a vision of beauty in one of the many dresses he had commissioned for her, and Jareth could see very clearly he wasn't the only one who thought so.

With a wave of his hand, Jareth changed his clothes to something more suitable for a public appearance, and prepared to transport himself to her side.

Prying eyes be damned.

[17]

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**Done.**

**I'm kinda embarrassed. If I hadn't put this on my to-do list a month ago, I would've forgotten about this altogether. Seriously, it's 10pm here, and I forgot to post until now. I'm sorry if this is late to most of you. At least it's up.**

**Other than that, the next chapter is going to be a longer one. And it's almost done. So I just need to finish that up tonight and edit it up real good.**

**All of you be good, sleep well, eat something healthy, and have a good day or night! :)**

**Next Post Date Goal: July 29, 2016**


	19. Chapter 18

**AT LAST, THE REAL CHAPTER ARRIVES!**

**Disclaimer: No, I don't anything related to Labyrinth (she says as she hastily shoves Labyrinth merch into her closet).**

**Thanks, as always to the amazing tmwillson3 who is patient and always catches things I never do.**

* * *

Sarah had hoisted Toby up by his waist so that he could look more closely at the intricate glass figurines while the vendor explained how, with the addition of just a touch of magic, the dolls would come to life and start dancing on their own. Some of them could even dance together.

Neither of the siblings dared to touch the dolls, but Sarah couldn't help taking notice of a little ballerina figure a few rows over from a nutcracker.

When she had asked if the two could dance together, the vendor scoffed at the idea.

"Why in the Underground would a ballerina dance with a nutcracker?"

"Maybe there's no reason in the Underground," Sarah said, trying to keep venom from her voice. "But Above there's an old story about a prince that was turned into a nutcracker, and the woman who saved him was a ballerina."

Sarah knew she'd gotten the attention of both the vendor and her brother. They both turned to look at her, as though waiting for the full story. She had little doubt that the small crowd that had slowly accumulated around them was listening eagerly as well.

The performer in Sarah almost wanted to meet their expectations and at minimum tell them the abridged version.

"You never told me that story," Toby said, staring directly at Sarah as she started to lower him down. Her arms were getting tired.

"Are you sure?" she asked with mock confusion. "I could've sworn I told you that story when you were two."

"Sarah!" the boy said, rolling his eyes. "I don't remember that!"

Sarah giggled as she took her brother's hand again.

"Why don't I tell it to you again tonight before bed?"

Toby's eyes lit up in excitement. Simultaneously, there was a ripple of disappointed from the crowd.

Sarah glanced up at their followers, watching them quickly begin to act busy to avoid suspicion.

Sarah knew that she and Toby were drawing attention. First, the two were probably some of the few humans any of the Goblin Kingdom citizens had seen in a long time. Second, it was no secret who they were. It seemed like the people watching them from afar were just awestruck by their celebrity status.

Briefly, Sarah wondered if this was how her mother had felt after her big break.

Pushing away the thought, Sarah bid farewell to the vendor, who simply went back to looking grumpy.

Gripping her hand lightly as they walked, Toby's head swiveled around, looking at every little thing, trying to decide which stall he wanted to see next.

Immediately around them, there were stands selling fruits, vegetables, fish (most of which Sarah could only name because there was a fish vendor in the elf city that had had a crush on her and given her discounts), and a little further down the way, there was what looked like a liquor vendor.

The sibling's guard yawned behind them.

As Toby started pulling Sarah towards a stall where several people were weaving carpets with magic, Sarah glanced back at the guard.

He had been quiet the entire time they'd been walking around, merely watching them or glaring at the crowd if anyone tried to get to close.

Honestly, he'd barely said a word to her since introducing himself, and if he did, it usually was one or two words at a time. Sarah wasn't sure if he was just reserved, or if he was just very focused on doing his job.

They stopped in front of the carpet stall, Toby watching in awe at the use of magic in such blatant display. Sarah found herself watching the intricate weaving and knotting involved in making the carpets quietly as Toby babbled softly about how cool it was.

Elves weren't much for magic, so the most magic that Toby had been exposed to over the past few years was reserved to a few street magicians showing off magical feats. Aside from the time that Sarah had run the Labyrinth and the showers of glitter she'd been exposed to more than once, Sarah didn't have much knowledge of magic, either.

The colorful strings danced through the air as they travelled towards the looms, carefully weaving themselves into the other pieces as they watched.

Remarkably, Toby was distracted by this display for a good ten minutes, giving Sarah a moment to relax and breathe. Her brother was always going to be a handful, but Sarah loved him nonetheless. She was just grateful for the moment of distraction.

It allowed her a little time to think about her surroundings.

Sarah hadn't anticipated being so… famous. The guard was bound to draw attention to them, but everyone seemed to know who they were without much more than a glance.

Of course, it seemed obvious now, but news and gossip had likely travelled from the castle about her arrival. It made Sarah a little anxious.

It was rare for something like gossip to come from the Labyrinth.

In the Elf Kingdom, rumors had travelled like wildfire. Sarah remembered a day when Rínir had fallen face first into a cake, meant for a party, early in the morning. She had had the day off and was visiting Holt and Mira when a patron walked in, laughing about the story, only three hours later.

In a matter of days, a visiting dignitary from the Dwarf Kingdom had asked if the story was true.

Yet, the most information that came out of the Labyrinth was political news. There was only one rumor she had heard about the Labyrinth or the Goblin King, and it was just about a countess that had come to visit the Goblin King and had been blatantly rejected when she tried to seduce him.

Well, unless you counted the endless experiences of runners, but it barely counted, as most runners didn't like to share their experiences.

Finally, Toby grew bored of watching the weavers and began looking around for their next stop.

[18]

"Sarah?"

Sarah and Toby froze at the sound of the voice and turned to the stall owner.

The boy had been dragging her past the stall, chasing after a fire juggler he had seen pass by.

"Rhokal?"

Sarah couldn't believe her eyes. Her friend from the elf city was here? Well, she supposed he was a wandering salesman, but to see him here, looking the same as ever, standing among his wares, with the highest quality spirits tucked behind him and his best sellers on the counter in front.

"Well, I'll be!" Rhokal said, gesturing the siblings over with a warm smile. "I haven't seen either of you for almost a month! I'd heard rumors that you'd moved, but who could have guessed to the Labyrinth!"

Despite herself, Sarah smiled. He was the same as ever.

"Well, I'm sure those aren't the only rumors you heard about me," Sarah said, trying to hide her nerves behind a rueful smile.

"Pah," he said, waving a hand dismissively. "I don't put much stock in rumors."

"Oh come on, Rhokal," she said, teasingly. "Surely there must be some juicy rumors about why I suddenly disappeared?"

"Juicy rumors indeed," the man said with an eye roll as he began to sort through his stock, looking for a particular item. "'Sarah's run away with the Goblin King to be his bride!' 'The Goblin King kidnapped Sarah and her brother!' 'Sarah used a love potion on the Goblin King and disappeared to hide it!' Anyone who has ever known you would dismiss these rumors in a second!"

Sarah fought back a cringe.

Of course all the rumors were connected to the Goblin King. Why wouldn't they?

"Honestly, those are the tame ones, too," Rhokal said, a bit more softly, glancing down at Toby. "There was one that said Toby was the Goblin King's child, and that you'd had some kind of illicit affair with him when you were younger."

A laugh escaped Sarah before she could smother it with her hand.

Rhokal raised an eyebrow at her reaction.

"What does el-i-sit mean?" Toby asked, looking up at Sarah expectantly.

Sarah tried not to groan and glared good-naturedly at Rhokal.

"You keep teaching him words he shouldn't know."

The nymph merely shrugged, his hands coming up with a bottle.

"Hopefully this nice bottle will convince you to forgive me?" he said, holding out for her to see. "It's a bottle of dwarven bourbon. It's been aged for 60 years, and no two bottles are exactly alike, even if the contents are the same."

Sarah sighed and smiled apologetically.

"Sorry," said Sarah. "I don't have any money today."

Rhokal's face twisted into a little pout, but he placed the bottle on the counter in front of him.

"How about this," said Rhokal, leaning conspiratorially across the counter. "You tell me what really happened, and I'll give you this bottle."

"I feel like you're getting the short end of this deal," said Sarah, leaning in as well. "You must not be a very good businessman."

"That, or I'm just weak to a pretty face," he said, smiling innocently.

Sarah rolled her eyes.

"Fine," she said with a huff. "Here's the short version: I met the Goblin King a long time ago; we met again while I was working; he was… surprised to see me after so long. I moved because I didn't want people to think the wrong thing about me, or try to hurt Toby. I made a deal with Goblin King, and now we live here."

"What, no details?" asked Rhokal. "Just the barebones?"

"You didn't say you wanted details. You just wanted the story. But I'll tell you what, you can keep the bottle if you do me a favor."

Rhokal glanced down at the bottle next to him, but indicated for her to continue.

"When you get back to the Elf Kingdom, could you tell anyone who asks that I moved to the Troll Kingdom?" asked Sarah. "Tell them I don't know the Goblin King, that it was a misunderstanding. Please?"

"May I ask why?"

"I'm just trying to protect my brother."

Rhokal glanced down at the boy, who smiled brightly at him.

"I would have done that, even without a deal," the nymph said, standing straight. "So you may keep the bottle. And," Rhokal carefully reached under the counter, "the young man may have a piece of candy for being so patient."

Toby's eyes lit up, and he began bouncing excitedly.

Just as Rhokal placed the small sweet in the child's hand, Sarah felt a strange tingling sensation on the back of her neck.

Out of the corner of her eye, Sarah saw her guard stiffen. When Rhokal looked up to her, he froze, took a step back, and bowed.

And he wasn't the only one. As Sarah began to turn around, she couldn't help but notice that most of the crowd had stopped to bow or curtsy and murmur.

So she wasn't the least bit surprised when she found herself face to face with the Goblin King, a familiar smirk gracing his lips.

[18]

At the sight of the Goblin King, Sarah wasn't quite sure how to react.

Her first instinct was to ask why he was here; though she suspected the reason was standing next to her, probably trying to hide the piece of candy without being noticed.

Instead, Sarah followed the crowd and curtsied to the King.

Jareth raised an eyebrow as she dipped down, almost as though he wasn't expecting it.

"Hello, Your Majesty," Sarah said, her voice calm.

"Hello, Sarah."

Silence hung in the air between them as the crowd moved around them, though they all watched carefully. The noise of the crowd had softened with the arrival of the king, but there was a persistent murmur that seemed to flow through the throngs of people. Just enough noise to make the silence deafening.

Despite her unease, Sarah continued to make direct eye contact with Jareth. Toby's hand in hers was what kept her grounded.

"You're not going to ask why I'm here?" the Goblin King asked, tilting his head slightly.

Sarah was immediately reminded that Jareth could turn into an owl. It seemed he had a few bird-like quirks that transferred over.

"I didn't think I needed to," she said. "You're the king, after all. You must have your reasons."

Jareth chuckled, placing his gloved hands on his black-clad hips.

"I've come to escort you and my heir back to the castle," he said, a gleam in his eye that Sarah didn't know how to identify. "It seems you stole him away from his lessons without permission."

"Heir?!" Rhokal whispered behind her. His voice was urgent and confused. "What is he talking about?"

Sarah turned slightly so that her attention was divided between the salesman and the king.

"It's part of the deal I made to live here," Sarah explained to her friend, her voice soft enough that the straining ears couldn't hear her. "It's – it's complicated. Basically, Toby's his heir, and we're both living in the castle."

Rhokal looked like he was straining to keep his jaw from dropping.

"What kind of deal did you make?" asked Rhokal, clearly concerned.

"Nothing dangerous," she assured him.

At least, that's what she hoped.

Honestly, Sarah didn't know what to expect from the Goblin King. She knew she had rules coming. Things she'd have to do in exchange for living in the Labyrinth. With any luck, they wouldn't be anything that would… compromise her.

Rhokal glanced past her to the Goblin King, assessing the fae's reaction to Sarah's words. He gave away no obvious emotion, only keeping his eyes trained on Sarah face.

"Alright," Rhokal said, his tone serious.

Then, like a switch had been flicked, Rhokal smiled brightly and attempted to hand Sarah the bottle of Dwarven bourbon.

"Well, then," he said cheerily, "shall I wrap this up for you? Or would you prefer to just carry it to the castle?"

"Oh, no, that's fine, I don't–"

"What does she owe you for the bottle?" Jareth asked suddenly.

Sarah had to fight off a jump. The Goblin King had moved closer to her while she'd been talking, and was now only inches away from her.

"Oh, nothing, Your Majesty," the salesman said quickly, holding out the bottle for Sarah to take. "She just traded some harmless information."

Jareth raised a suspicious eyebrow, but didn't say anything.

When Sarah reached for the bottle, intending to force Rhokal to lower it back onto the counter, Jareth stayed her hand by grabbing it softly with his own.

Ignoring the proximity, Sarah looked up into the Goblin King's eyes again.

"What exactly did you tell him?" he asked softly, his voice barely a murmur.

"I only told him the barebones of how we ended up here," Sarah explained, suppressing the shiver that went down her spine and waiting for Jareth to let go. "Nothing more."

The fae continued to look down at her for a few moments, like he was considering what she had said.

"Very well," the Goblin King announced, taking the bottle from the salesman, releasing Sarah's in the process.

[18]

Sarah was surprised Jareth's transformation wasn't a peacock.

It hadn't escaped her notice that Jareth's outfit was different. _Again_.

After seeing her own closet, Sarah didn't even want to think about how many clothes the Goblin King had. At the very least, Sarah found comfort in the fact that Jareth was predictable. He never seemed to wear the same outfit twice.

However, now that the Goblin King, the Heir, and the Champion were all walking together, the crowd had more than doubled.

Sarah pretended not to see the crowd that followed them as she walked between Toby and Jareth, her eyes locked forward.

One of Sarah's hands, as ever, was gripped firmly in Toby's as he practically skipped along, trying to entertain himself by watching the faces of their admirers. The other hand was lightly tucked into Jareth's offered arm.

Sarah had already adjusted to being watched by a crowd. This was very likely going to be a common occurrence now that she was back in the Labyrinth. Even so, the crowd was almost oppressive now that _all_ eyes eagerly watched their every move, and each body moved in a bow or curtsy as they passed.

Since they'd bidden their farewells to Rhokal, barely a word had been spoken between the three of them, and it made Sarah nervous. She felt like her whole body was tensing, bracing for whatever was coming.

The air felt oppressive, but Sarah didn't dare speak first. Even if she had been willing, Sarah didn't know what she would say. What could she say to him?

Jareth watched Sarah quietly from the corner of his eye as she attempted to keep a straight face. Yet, despite her efforts, Sarah was not good at hiding her thoughts.

"I'm impressed at how you handled yourself today," Jareth said softly so only she could hear him. The sound of his voice caused her to jump slightly and her gaze shifted to him.

"Oh?" she asked, her voice almost sounding like she was waiting for a challenge. "And why's that?"

"You refused everything offered to you freely," he said, casting the hint of a smile her way. "It's rare for humans to refuse a gift."

Sarah crinkled her nose, suppressing an unladylike snort.

"It's not my first fae market," Sarah stated. "I know better than to accept anything free. Unless there's a special occasion like a birthday, never accept anything called a gift. It will always come with a price."

Jareth chuckled.

"True enough," he said.

Once again, the adults lapsed into silence.

[18]

The crowd finally started to dissipate after they'd left the main marketplace, and Sarah allowed herself to relax a little bit more.

By the time they arrived at the castle, Toby was starting to complain about being hungry, so Jareth escorted them both to the dining hall where he left them to eat. He had work to return to, but before he left, Jareth kissed Sarah on the back of the hand like a gentleman and told her that he had a few things to discus with her after dinner – which he made clear she would be joining him for.

As Sarah got Toby ready to eat, making sure he sat correctly in his chair and had a napkin in his lap, a memory floated up into the front of her mind.

It was something Irene had said, something close to what was in that little red book.

Sarah shoved the thought away as quickly as it came.

It simply wasn't possible.

More than that, she didn't want to believe it.

[18]

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**OKAY! OMFG This chapter took me three hours to get to accept it! Seriously! Three hours just to get the chapter into a document format! UGH!**

**That said, enjoy the chapter. I'm too tired to say anything else.**


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